And this is not the only time that Legend’s tenuous grasp of complex political issues has veered into antisemitism and anti-Israel bigotry.

During the 2014 Gaza conflict, which was preceded by Hamas kidnapping and murdering three Israeli teenagers and firing rockets from the coastal enclave, the singer offered this penetrating observation on Twitter: “So sick watching our Secretary of State have to grovel so hard to tell Israel how much he loves them while Israeli cabinet shits on him.”

And in 2016, Legend likened previous US president Donald Trump to Nazi leader and architect of the Holocaust, Adolf Hitler.

Which brings us back to Shopify.

The e-commerce platform, which allows individual merchants to open their own online stores, has also waded into a few contentious issues, most notably when it blacklisted official stores selling Donald Trump’s campaign merchandise after the coup attempt and Capitol Hill riot on January 6, 2021. It offered this explanation:

Shopify does not tolerate actions that incite violence. Based on recent events, we have determined that the actions by President Donald J. Trump violate our Acceptable Use Policy, which prohibits promotion or support of organizations, platforms or people that threaten or condone violence to further a cause.

But one must wonder how sincere Shopify is in ensuring the stores on its platform do not promote or support organizations or people that “threaten or condone violence to further a cause,” considering the number of sites working under its umbrella that appear to be doing just that.

For example, there are a number of Shopify stores that currently trade in Nazi memorabilia, including one that advertises an “incredible” Luftwaffe general’s hat for $15,500. For $13,750, one can get their hands on a “spectacular” Nazi uniform, complete with a bright red Swastika-emblazoned armband.

Another store called “Kampfgruppe” — a word associated with Nazi combat troops — purports to sell everything from Nazi medals, armbands, belts, and flags. It should be noted, though, that it also has a collection of military items that belonged to the Allied Forces.

There is also an abundance of shops that are stocked up with “pro-Palestinian” items, including retailers selling scarves, t-shirts, and even cushions emblazoned with Hamas’ favorite rallying cry, “from the [Jordan] river to the [Mediterranean] sea, Palestine will be free” (see here and here).

This antisemitic slogan is an explicit call for the destruction of the Jewish state.

Shopify is, of course, a private company, and has every right to choose who operates on its platform.

But when that same corporation allows some vendors to sell Nazi collectibles — a practice Jewish groups have decried as profiting off the Holocaust — as well as goods that implicitly call for violence against Israel and its citizens, Shopify has very clearly nailed its colors to the proverbial mast: that is, its actions suggest promoting hatred and violence is unacceptable except when Jews and Israelis are the targets.