Retail Titan Walmart Sees Sales Surge Amid Controversy Over Nazi Shirt
Walmart found itself embroiled in controversy after a Nazi-themed shirt briefly appeared on its website in November 2025, sparking accusations of promoting hate and extremism.
By Rob Redding
Editor & Publisher
New York, NY. Nov. 20, 2025, 8 a.m. - Walmart announced a significant increase in sales today, despite recent controversy surrounding a Nazi-themed shirt that briefly appeared on its website.
The shirt, listed by third-party sellers on Walmart’s online marketplace, featured a provocative image of the Nazi salute overlaid with a raised fist. The fist is an emblem historically associated with Black Power and resistance. The item was paired with the caption “paper beats rock.” Social media users quickly caught wind of the unsettling product, igniting a fierce online campaign to report and eradicate the offensive listing ahead of the earning report and internet furor.
The controversial design was reportedly part of a broader trend of extremist merchandise slipping through Walmart’s vetting process. According to Walmart spokesperson Blair Cromwell, the retailer’s team swiftly acted once the offending items were flagged, removing the shirts and terminating the seller involved.
Walmart’s strict prohibited products policy explicitly bans items that promote hate, intolerance, or propaganda linked to Nazism. Yet, the shirt managed to slip through the cracks, highlighting ongoing challenges in monitoring third-party listings.
"The items in question were listed by a third-party seller and have been removed from our site," Cromwell stated via email. "We have zero tolerance for prohibited or offensive products on our marketplace and will continue to strengthen our systems to prevent this from happening again."
The “paper beats rock” phrase, ostensibly a tongue-in-cheek nod to the classic game of rock-paper-scissors, took on a sinister new meaning in this context. The Nazi salute, performed by extending the right arm at an upward angle with the palm down, has long been associated with fascist ideology. Meanwhile, the raised symbol of Black Power was used here to suggest that fascism could triumph over resistance movements, fueling outrage among activists and social media users alike.
This isn’t the first time Walmart has had to scrub extremist merchandise from its shelves. In 2024, the retailer removed shirts linked to white nationalist band Skrewdriver from its online platform, underscoring a recurring struggle to police its marketplace.
As the story trends, advocates and watchdog groups are calling for tighter controls and accountability from major retailers like Walmart, emphasizing the importance of preventing hate symbols from proliferating online.
In a statement, social media watchdog Left Coast Right Watch emphasized, “Retailers must do more to vet third-party sellers and ensure their platforms are not used to spread hate or extremist messages.”
Ironically, the company today just announced increased global sales. The company posted an adjusted earnings per share of $0.62, surpassing the $0.60 forecasted by Wall Street analysts, according to Bloomberg data. Revenue increased by 6% year-over-year to $179.5 billion, beating the expected $177.6 billion.
(Rob Redding is known as America's Independent Voice. His show, Redding News Review Unrestricted, is available exclusively to subscribers on his website, ReddingNewsReview.com).