Phil Robertson’s statement on homosexuality and his resulting suspension from the A&E television show Duck Dynasty has sparked some serious debate. Both Robertson’s statements and his suspension have caused many people to boycott watching the show and now, stores are considering pulling Duck Dynasty merchandise from their shelves.

Stores have been known to pull celebrity lines of merchandise from shelves before. Earlier this year, Paula Deen’s cookware line was dropped by Walmart after she was accused of making racial comments. Food Network also refused to renew Deen’s contract when it ended in June of 2013.

Stores are not willing to risk losing the business of customers who are offended by the comments of celebrities whose product lines they carry. Cracker Barrel restaurants and stores were one of such companies who contemplated removing Duck Dynasty and Duck Commander products from their shelves.

The company initially said that they had removed products that they thought may be offensive to some customers. A few days later the company released a statement saying,

“Our intent was to avoid offending, but that’s just what we’ve done,” the company announced. “Today, we are putting all our Duck Dynasty products back in our stores.”

Robertson made his offensive comments during an interview with GQ magazine.

After being told of his suspension and how offensive his remarks were, Robertson said,

“I myself am a product of the ’60s,” he explained in a written statement issued after the flap. “I centered my life around sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll until I hit rock bottom and I accepted Jesus as my savior. My mission today is to go forth and tell people about why I follow Christ and also what the Bible teaches. And part of that teaching is that men and women are meant to be together. However, I would never treat anyone with disrespect just because they are different from me. We were all created by the Almighty, and like him, I love all of humanity. We would all be better off if we loved God and we loved each other.”

Do you think the network was right to suspend Robertson and should Duck Dynasty merchandise be pulled from shelves?

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