Apple is removing games from the app store that feature Confederate flag. Several app developers have been reporting that their Civil War games that featured imagery of the flag as a part of the historical context of their game have been pulled from the iTunes App Store. This move to ban these games follows similar decisions by number of major retailers like Amazon, Walmart, eBay and others. These giants have already banned the sale of any Confederate flag merchandise as a reaction to the recent events.
Apple said in a statement that apps are being removed “that use the Confederate flag in offensive or mean-spirited ways, which is in violation of our guidelines.” Apps that depict flag in educational or historical contexts are not being removed from the App Store.
The move comes days after Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted to honor the victims of the Charleston, South Carolina, church shooting by eradicating racism and symbols that feed it. Apple Inc. is the latest company to distance itself from the divisive symbol after the shooting aspect appeared in pictures holding the flag.
Currently, the affected games include Ultimate General: Gettysburg, Civil War games by developer Hunted Cow no longer appear for sale. Other apps have also been affected like Southern Pride Wallpaper. Many developers are arguing that their games are not meant to be offensive and include the flag imagery because of its historical context.
The Apple banning doesn’t seem to be universal as there are other titles that include the image of the flag are still live on the App Store. These include The Battle of Antietam, The Civil War Today and more. the company said that it is working with developers to get games that have been removed back in the store after the required changes have been made.
Share your thoughts in the comments!
If you like our content, please consider sharing, leaving a comment or subscribing to our RSS feed to have future posts delivered to your feed reader.
Please follow us on twitter @CodeRewind and like us on facebook
