Despite a ruling by the Ad Standards Council that deems the term “wife beater” offensive and in violation of Canada’s advertising code, numerous ads for men’s tank tops with that description can still be found on Amazon’s Canadian website.
This colloquial term originated in the 1930s to describe a particular style of snug tank tops initially designed as men’s undergarments. Its popularization can be traced back to 1951, when Marlon Brando sported one in the character of Stanley Kowalski in the movie A Streetcar Named Desire.
Advocates for women’s rights are dissatisfied with Amazon’s continued use of this term and Canada’s inability to compel the retailer to remove it.
Harmy Mendoza, executive director of WomanACT, a group dedicated to ending intimate partner violence, expressed, “We should strive for a culture that upholds respect for women. ‘Wife beater’ is a term that not only offends and insults women but also survivors.”
Upon reviewing the Amazon ads featuring the term, Mendoza initiated a petition urging the online retail giant to eliminate the phrase from its platform.
“By normalizing gender-based violence, we aim to reside in a society that combats and eradicates such behaviors,” she emphasized.
In March 2025, Ad Standards Canada’s seven-member council concluded, based on a complaint about an Amazon ad for a men’s “wife beater” tank top, that the ad breached the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards by showing indifference to violence against women.
Although the council requested Amazon to modify or remove the ad, compliance is voluntary, and it appears that the U.S.-based company has chosen to disregard the council’s directive.
In response to the initial complaint, Amazon defended the term by stating that it was widely accepted in retail and popular culture, and did not contravene its Offensive Products Policy.
CBC News identified ten ads for “wife beater” tops offered by third-party vendors on Amazon and forwarded them to the company, along with concerns raised by Mendoza regarding the term.
Amazon responded via email, stating that the company aims to maintain an inclusive store environment and considers cultural sensitivities when managing product listings on its site.