Boston, Mass., Nov 16, 2008 / 13:43 pm
A Boston College merchandising deal with the lingerie company Victoria’s Secret is being attacked by alumni as “disgraceful and appalling” as the Jesuit-run school insists it never authorized the undergarments which bear its name and logo.
Victoria’s Secret has been selling university-themed clothing from 33 schools since July. Stores are selling hot-pink Boston College tank tops for $19.50 and Eagles “short shorts,” the Boston Herald reports. The company’s Newbury Street store displays its items bearing the college’s name next to life-sized photographs of nearly naked women dressed in lingerie.
The Collegiate Licensing Co. is a partner in the program and passes some sales revenue on to the schools.
“It’s disgraceful and appalling,” C.J. Doyle, a Boston College graduate who runs the Catholic Action League of Massachusetts, told the Boston Herald. “This is just one more example of the university’s callous contempt for Catholic sensibilities and its complete indifference to what remains of its Catholic identity.”