Papa John’s Apologizes for ‘Insensitive’ ‘9/11 Remembrance’ Promotion

Papa John’s is apologizing after an Ohio-based franchise launched an “extremely insensitive” promotion to sell large pizzas on the fifteenth anniversary of 9/11.

The promotion was called “9/11 Remembrance” and pictured five pizzas and a statement that said, “Never Forget, In Memory of Those We Have Lost, United We Shall Always Stand! Enjoy ANY LARGE PIZZA for $9.11.” The corresponding promo code was listed as “911RMBR.”

The company’s headquarters in Louisville released a statement Sunday saying the promotion was “extremely insensitive” and “inappropriate.”

The statement said:

We sincerely apologize for this extremely insensitive and inappropriate local promo code which was issued by an independent franchisee in Ohio. It was a complete lapse in judgment and does not reflect our values. We have been assured that corrective action was taken by the franchisee and the code will be deactivated.

Papa John’s is not the first business to offer a controversial promotion on 9/11.

Just a few days ago, a Florida Walmart was under fire for creating a Coke display in the shape of the Twin Towers.

A mattress store in Texas also created a Twin Towers sale promotion that showed mattresses stacked in the shape of the Twin Towers while a woman announces a sale for all mattresses at a “twin price,” CNN reported. CNN has also reported the mattress store has shut down since the advertisement.