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Nike declined to comment on the store closures, but issued a
statement reiterating its "long-standing commitment to
diversity, inclusion and respect", adding that the man seen in a
video posted online was not a company employee.
In the video, taken at a beach resort, a white man with a South
African accent says: "And not one kaffir in sight. Fucking
heaven on earth."
The "K word" as it is known in South Africa is apartheid-era
slang for a black person and is regarded as a deeply offensive
slur on a par with the "N word" in America.
Times Live online news service said the man in the video was
married to a merchandising director at Nike. A Nike spokeswoman
in London declined to comment and Reuters was unable to
independently verify the person's identity.
South African media reported Nike stores had closed their doors.
Reuters witnesses confirmed that two were shut at a mall in the
Sandton district of Johannesburg.
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), a party known for its
hard-left and African nationalist positions, said it would file
a criminal complaint against the man in the video.
In January, protesters led by the EFF trashed six H&M stores <HMb.ST>
over an ad by the retail chain which featured a black child
modeling a sweatshirt with the slogan "coolest monkey in the
jungle." [nL8N1P80E9]
South Africa remains deeply scarred by its apartheid and
colonial past, with the racial reconciliation embraced by the
late president Nelson Mandela frequently marred by racist
incidents.
(Additional reporting by Patricia Aruo; Editing by James
Macharia and Robin Pomeroy)
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