LONDON -- British clothing retailer Next is getting slammed on social media for one of its T-shirts aimed at girls between ages 3 and 16.
The long-sleeved gray T-shirt, which reads "Happy Girls Are The Prettiest," takes inspiration from the Audrey Hepburn quote: "I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day, and I believe in miracles."
On Wednesday, Next said it would remove the shirt, which ranged from £9 to £12. "We have decided to remove the item from sale. It was never our intention to upset or cause offense to any of our customers," the company posted in a tweet.
Many on Twitter pointed out that the shirt equated happiness with attractiveness and casted a negative light on mental illness.
@nextofficial Selling "happy girls are the prettiest" t-shirts NOT OK. So do my episodes of depression make me ugly? https://t.co/mMP1HfbrsK— Laura Wright (@hippocastanum) September 29, 2015
@eleanor_pugh @nextofficial @fawcettsociety Pretty mean on all us miseries suffering with mental ill health. No pressure girls of today!— Feminist UK (@FeministUK) September 28, 2015
'Happy Girls are the Prettiest' slogan for little girls aged 3+ by next, UK retailer, no not in 1815 but 2015. Shameful @nextofficial— Lisa Hutton (@lisabump4) September 29, 2015
@Nextofficial Ugh! So unhappy girls, which could be for perfectly valid reasons (illness, bereavement etc), are what https://t.co/WkzqOrh9jT— Jo Beswick (@JojoBeeswax) September 29, 2015
@nextofficial are on their way to a mass boycott! #notbuyingit https://t.co/SyXuHcIQm2— Scáthach (@aitchtaylor) September 30, 2015
@nextofficial selling this 2 girls. Don't care where the quote comes from this is not ok! @fawcettsociety @FeministUK pic.twitter.com/p7MYvqNDOV— Eleanor Pugh-Stanley (@eleanor_pugh) September 5, 2015
@fawcettsociety by complaining directly to the companies concerned. Here's how to make a complaint http://t.co/9DmbuKwL9o. Best wishes,— Mind (@MindCharity) September 29, 2015
The shirt was also removed from photos on its site that featured other shirts in the same collection.