It’s back-to-school shopping time for a majority of the country, which means people around the U.S. are streaming into places like Target and Meijer to scoop up their pens, pencils, notebooks, and Trapper Keepers. Walmart, though, apparently has a different idea about what students should be bringing to school (and, for that matter, about what makes a person a hero).
Just check out this sign placement and what resides underneath.
Explain this @Walmart pic.twitter.com/Ir9pwg0MeF
— Anthony (@omgitsbirdman) August 9, 2017
Afterward, @OMGItsBirdman laughed it off, saying he assumed it was a customer prank but then again, “they hire pretty much anyone at Walmart.”
Walmart, though, didn’t think it was funny.
Absolutely, Anthony. We agree this was horrible and we’ve since removed the sign from the display. -Vik
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
That tweet, though, wasn’t the first time Walmart heard about the signage situation. The chain quickly determined the sign was in Evansville, Indiana—though there’s a question about that now—and the sign apparently was quickly removed.
Still, the person in charge of social media for Walmart had a busy day on Wednesday.
We hear you. 😞 This was horrible and we removed the sign as soon as we found out. -Vik
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
We understand and agree this is truly horrible. We want you to know we removed this as soon as we were alerted to the store location. -Vik
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
We totally agree. We have since had the sign removed from the display. This was horrible and we’re so sorry this happened. -Vik
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
Hi Coy, this REALLY isn’t acceptable. The sign’s gone and we’re looking into how this could have happened. Thanks for letting us know. -Dean
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
Hi Frank. That’s not acceptable. This sign is no longer on this display. We are very sorry about this. -Dean
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
We apologize for this dreadful mistake and are working to identify the store involved. -Mac
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
It is. It’s a really disturbing photo and we’re still investigating how this could have happened, Kathleen. We’re so sorry. -Dean
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
We definitely wouldn’t allow this to happen in our stores, Aks. We’re looking into what occurred with this regrettable situation. -Toni
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 10, 2017
What’s in this photo would NEVER be okay in our stores. We’re looking into how it could have happened. -Scott
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 10, 2017
Later, though, Walmart—which came under fired last month for selling a wig cap online that was described in racial terms—seemed not to know which store had displayed the sign.
To clarify, the store manager at the location reported to us confirmed that there was no such sign currently posted. -Dean
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
Hi Jared. To add a bit, the manager at the location reported confirmed that there was no such sign posted. Still looking into it. -Dean
— Walmart (@Walmart) August 9, 2017
Though the tweet from @OMGItsBirdman was the one that got the most traction on Twitter (as of this writing, it has about 27,000 retweets and 52,000 likes), Walmart told the Washington Post it’s still trying to find who posted the original photo. The company spokesperson also told the paper that though it’s unclear if the sign was placed there by an employee or a shopper, the photo appears to be legitimate based on the way the store is configured.
Leeanna May told the Post she took the photo and that she was in Evansville when she did it.
“We have already lost so many innocent lives to guns,” she said. “… People don’t seem to honestly care.”
Walmart did not immediately respond to Daily Dot questions about the sign and in which store it was placed.
Update 11:51am CT, Aug. 10: When reached for comment, Walmart directed the Daily Dot to its official statement on the matter.
“What’s seen in this photograph would never be acceptable in our stores. We regret this situation and are looking into how it could have happened.”
