Etsy In Hot Seat As Buyers Threaten Boycott Over Alligator Alcatraz Merch Sales
Etsy is in the hot seat as social justice conscience buyers take to social media calling for boycott over sales of Alligator Alcatraz merch they say glorifies hate and violence against immigrants in direct violation of Etsy policies.
The items in question refer to the headline grabbing opening of a new immigration detention facility located in the Florida Everglades, putting the merchandise directly at the heart of current national events and political division over the Trump administration's immigration and deportation policies and activities.
Etsy is far from the only site where you'll find sellers eager to ride the latest news cycle wave, or users advocating for marketplaces to ban these items - in fact, similar calls for action have been voiced in eBay's community forums as well.
But the "keep commerce human" marketplace faces additional scrutiny and backlash from their buyer base who may see even the appearance of tacit approval of these items as contrary Etsy's public ethics statements and prohibited item policies.
Progressive news site The Tennessee Holler tagged Etsy in posts on Facebook and Instagram, saying they've been receiving messages from buyers and sellers calling on the company to take these items down.
And a search of Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Bluesky and even X reveals many similar posts.
Considering stepping away from Etsy as a seller and buyer due to ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ dehumanization merchandise—it clashes with my hope and light values. Thoughts?
— 🌊Rhonda ~ (@SilverARTicfox) July 2, 2025
Etsy may have put themselves in a difficult position due to changes they made to their Prohibited Items policy last year which explicitly added "immigration status" as a "protected class" under the section regarding "hate items" while also removing "political affiliations" from the list of kinds of people whom they want to feel welcome on the site.
Liz Morton
Pre-March 2024 policy:
We want Etsy to be a community where people of all backgrounds, nationalities, religions, political affiliations, and even different types of artistic taste and humor feel welcome.
Art is incredibly subjective, and what is offensive to one is not necessarily offensive to others.
March 2024 update:
We want Etsy to be a community where people of all backgrounds, nationalities, religions, and even different types of artistic taste and humor feel welcome.
Art is incredibly subjective, and what is offensive to one is not necessarily offensive to others.
Previous language that said Etsy does not allow listings that "promote, support, or glorify hatred" toward people based on their status in a protected group was changed to a much broader and subjective scope of "violent or degrading language."
Pre-March 2024 policy:
Etsy does not allow items or listings that promote, support or glorify hatred toward people or otherwise demean people based upon: race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, gender identity, disability, or sexual orientation (collectively, “protected groups”). We also prohibit items or content that promote organizations or people with such views.
March 2024 update:
Etsy does not allow items or listings with violent or degrading language toward people based upon: race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, gender, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation, immigration status, or caste (collectively, “protected classes”). We also prohibit items or content that promote organizations with such views.
Etsy then doubled down even further on the subjectivity by adding a sentence that says it prohibits:
Content which directly or indirectly contains violent or degrading commentary against protected classes.
That vagueness and broadening of scope wasn't just reserved for items that are prohibited, sections about what is allowed to be sold on Etsy were also changed to be more subjective and open to interpretation, going from a specific focus on"hate groups" to a more general focus on "hateful rhetoric" and "hateful intent."
Pre-March 2024 policy:
Some items may contain symbols or terms associated with hate groups in a context unrelated to the group itself. We understand that these items are subject to a variety of valid and often conflicting interpretations of their educational, historical and artistic value.
Recognizing that there may be no consensus on their value and reserving the right to evaluate such items on an individual, case-by-case basis.
March 2024 update:
Some items may contain symbols or terms associated with hateful rhetoric in a context unrelated to hateful intent. We understand that these items are subject to a variety of valid and often conflicting interpretations of their educational, historical and artistic value.
Recognizing that there may be no consensus on their value, we reserve the right to evaluate such items on an individual, case-by-case basis.
Unfortunately, the subjectivity and vagueness that was no doubt put in to provide maximum liability coverage for Etsy may come back to bite them.
While some may say images of a reptile and the words "Alligator Alcatraz" in and of themselves don't reach the level of "violent or degrading language toward people based on immigration status", others would say the context of those words and what the detention represents absolutely do meet that standard - leaving enforcement down to individual case-by-case basis.
The timing of those changes was also very interesting. Just days before that 2024 update, Etsy was explicitly name-checked in Supreme Court arguments about content moderation laws passed in Florida and Texas in response to concerns that social media companies were censoring their users, particularly those with conservative viewpoints.
Challenges around content moderation are likely to heat up even further as new leadership at the FTC and FCC are explicitly tackling alleged politically-based censorship in addition to legislative efforts to amend or sunset Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996, which provides broad immunity to online platforms for content posted by their users.
FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson has come out swinging against Big Tech censorship, shadowbanning, demonetization and more, opening up a public comment period earlier this year for consumers to report how they've been harmed by technology platforms "that limit users' ability to share their ideas or affiliations freely and openly."
Liz Morton
And Federal Communications Commission Chair, Brendan Carr, who wrote the Project 2025 chapter on the FCC, has said, “The FCC should work with Congress on more fundamental Section 230 reforms that go beyond interpreting its current terms. Congress should do so by ensuring that Internet companies no longer have carte blanche to censor protected speech while maintaining their Section 230 protections."
Charles Gasparino
Some users on Reddit say Etsy has been acting swiftly to take down Alligator Alcatraz items they've reported for violating the policy, while others in the same thread say no action has been taken on their reports - leaving those who oppose the items frustrated and looking for the company to take a stronger, more proactive and public stance on the subject.
As an example of the tightrope Etsy has to walk with enforcing politically sensitive policies, it may be instructive to look back at the significant brand damage and Congressional scrutiny PayPal experienced in 2022 due to policy updates which would have allowed them to fine users $2,500 for sending, posting or publishing "harmful" content that many took as a shot across the bow squarely aimed at conservatives in the cancel culture wars.
Liz Morton
After massive social media backlash and a wave of account closures in protest, PayPal was forced to rollback the policy.
Given the current state of political affairs and Etsy's already precarious position with investors due to lagging business performance, it's unlikely the Board and/or CEO Josh Silverman will take an explicit public stance on this issue - but if the Etsy Strike movement in 2022 taught us anything it would be not to underestimate the power of social media and highly engaged users.
Etsy has not responded to request for comment as of time of publishing.
