Archive -> December 11, 2004

Nike & Islamic pettifoggery

Nike Inc. Tuesday let the other shoe drop in a public affairs snafu festering for three months, agreeing to recall a line of shoes with a logo that a Muslim group found offensive.

The logo, meant to look like flames, resembles the word "Allah" in Arabic script. Shoes bearing the flame have been sold this summer under the names Air Bakin', Air Melt, Air Grill and Air B-Que.
    — Harrington, Jeff. Nike recalls disputed logo. The Cincinnati Enquirer [Internet]. 1997 Jun 25 [cited 2004 Dec 11]

If Islam worked, you wouldn’t be upset that Nike, the billion dollar sneaker company, made a logo that was written in stylized English letter “Air,” that resembles the word of your god, Allah in the Arabic script (photo). The problem is that Arabs don’t know the English script, so when they see something that looks like Arabic calligraphy they go crazy.

. . . If you allow the name Allah to be printed on t-shirts, why not on sneakers? You can’t literally walk on Allah, it’s just a name. If your excuse is dirt can get on it, and it’s too close to the feet, dirt can definitely get on t-shirts too. The have Allah on jewelry and on their prayer rugs that you put your feet on. So what’s the big difference between wearing the script of the name Allah on your and stepping on a prayer rug five times a day, that has Allah and or his other names written on it?

Staff Writer. Are The Pyramid People Muslims? 1997 Aug. 31; Page 4 (col. 1).