Forget about Levi Strauss-anti 2A

**birdwooddog** · November 30th, 2016, 04:03 PM

just published by Levi Strauss CEO

"Providing a safe environment to work and shop is a top priority for us at Levi Strauss & Co. That imperative is quickly challenged, however, when a weapon is carried into one of our stores. Recently, we had an incident in one of our stores where a gun inadvertently went off, injuring the customer who was carrying it."

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/open-...icy-chip-bergh

Whole letter

Dear Customers,

The debate in the U.S. over gun safety and gun rights is as complex as it is divisive. As a former army officer, a father and business leader, I’ve heard the arguments from all sides. And, as CEO of a 163-year-old company whose products and presence rest at the intersection of culture and community in more than 110 countries around the world, I feel a tremendous responsibility to share our position on the issue, now, at a time when clarity is paramount.

Providing a safe environment to work and shop is a top priority for us at Levi Strauss & Co. That imperative is quickly challenged, however, when a weapon is carried into one of our stores. Recently, we had an incident in one of our stores where a gun inadvertently went off, injuring the customer who was carrying it.

So, while we understand the heartfelt and strongly-held opinions on both sides of the gun debate, it is with the safety and security of our employees and customers in mind that we respectfully ask people not to bring firearms into our stores, offices or facilities, even in states where it’s permitted by law. Of course, authorized members of law enforcement are an exception.

With stores in Paris, Nice and Orlando, and the company’s European headquarters in Brussels, I’ve thought more about safety in the past year than in the previous three decades of my career because of how ‘close to home’ so many incidents with guns have come to impacting people working for this company.

We operate in hundreds of stores across every state in the U.S., and laws are different in each one. We know that the presence of firearms in our stores creates an unsettling environment for many of our employees and customers. We also know that trying to enforce a ban could potentially undermine the purpose of the ban itself: safety. With that in mind we’ve made this decision as a business – a request not a mandate – and we sincerely hope responsible gun owners will respect our position.

It boils down to this: you shouldn’t have to be concerned about your safety while shopping for clothes or trying on a pair of jeans. Simply put, firearms don't belong in either of those settings. In the end, I believe we have an obligation to our employees and customers to ensure a safe environment and keeping firearms out of our stores and offices will get us one step closer to achieving that reality.

Sincerely,

Chip Bergh

**Gman106** · November 30th, 2016, 04:08 PM

I didn't know they had their own stores. Oh well, back to Sears Toughskins. Haha, I wonder if they even make them anymore. I liked the green ones. Think I had red and brown, too.

**chinaboy** · November 30th, 2016, 04:29 PM

There is an article in the Morning Call. I guess he would like his customers to be suceptible to armed criminals. I cant say I bought Levi products before but now I dont think I ever will.

**DennisH82** · November 30th, 2016, 04:32 PM

They didn't say PRETTY PLEASE so no deal.

**Emptymag** · November 30th, 2016, 04:38 PM

Was that a long-winded way of saying "your guns are not banned from our stores - we just don't want YOU or them here"?

Essentially: We sincerely hope responsible gun owners will not shop here.

Works for me.

**thebearpack** · November 30th, 2016, 04:48 PM

"We have stores in many places where crazed gunmen and terrorists have already ignored existing laws and murdered innocent people, so we think it's a good idea to advertise that those stores will henceforth be full of unarmed victims who can't possibly fight back."

Brilliant.