New MyPillow ad includes a 'disturbing wink at Nazis': historian

21 September 2024

Far-right election denier Mike Lindell's MyPillow is now being advertised at a significant discount. One historian is pointing out that the pillow's new price is a reference to a prominent neo-Nazi rallying cry.

On the social media platform Bluesky, Willamette University history professor Seth Cotlar observed that the official @MyPillowUSA X (formerly Twitter) account tweeted an advertisement for its product with a posted price of $14.88. As the Southern Poverty Law Center explained, the number "1488" is a reference to the "14 words" slogan frequently used by neo-Nazis: "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children." The "88" is a reference to the eighth letter of the alphabet twice, interpreted by neo-Nazis to mean "Heil Hitler."

"This ad is a disturbing wink at Nazis, wrapped in the seemingly innocuous, plausibly deniable form of an advertisement," Cotlar wrote on Bluesky. "I doubt Lindell is behind this or would even get the reference, but that doesn't really matter."

"It is undeniable that there are fascists, and even straight up Nazis, working inside the Republican Party. One of them is likely responsible for that winking Lindell ad," he continued. "But such people still have to wink at each other like this. Lindell or other public figures wouldn't openly embrace this."

The MyPillow advertisement — which is still live on the account as of Saturday afternoon — was praised by numerous X users who made Nazi references.

"We will be buying," tweeted an account named "Ohio Groyper" ("Groyper" is the term used for fans of white supremacist influencer and Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes). An X user with "groyper" in her bio tweeted: "1488 right on!" Another X user replied to the ad by tweeting "the price is reich."

"We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white pillows," another user tweeted.

As Cotlar noted, it's not clear whether Lindell is in on the reference. In a video announcing the discount, Lindell is seen holding up two pillows and announcing the new discounted price as $14.98, even though both the official MyPillow website lists it as $14.88 with the promo code.

"I want to tell you about a current box store that put in an order — a big order — for our famous MyPillows, we made them all and got ready to ship them and they cancelled at the last minute," Lindell said in the video, after lamenting that his company had been "cancelled" by "attacks that just keep coming."

Whether Lindell is aware of the phrase, the ad was widely panned on X for its use of a neo-Nazi slogan. Colorado Political Workers Guild founder Logan Davis called the ad "shocking even for Lindell." Progressive podcaster Jordan Uhl quote-tweeted the ad and simply commented: "Mein Pillow."

Click here to read Cotlar's full thread on Bluesky.

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