Democrat state attorneys general keep harassing Target CEO Brian Cornell over the retailer’s decision to kowtow to the concerns of parents.
As previously reported, Target was caught last month peddling a wide array of LGBT-themed items for children. The discovery led to massive backlash, with parents across the country vowing to boycott the retailer until it removed the items.
In response, Target stores did indeed outright remove some of the LGBT-themed items. The rest of the items were relocated to the back of their stores.
‘I walked right out of Target today!’ Target faces Bud Light style backlash for trans-themed product push https://t.co/oXyCaypHQy pic.twitter.com/ZpsSyLMvcU
— Conservative News (@BIZPACReview) May 15, 2023
Responding to this development, 15 Democrat attorneys general led by New York Attorney General Letitia James sent a letter to Cornell on June 7th demanding he “reverse your recent decision to remove products celebrating Pride Month from the shelves of certain Target stores.”
“While we respect your stated desire to protect staff members’ ‘sense of safety and well-being while at work,’ we encourage you to consider other measures, such as enhancing security, rather than capitulating to a small group of extreme individuals’ intimidation tactics,” the letter read.
“New York has a proud tradition of fighting for everyone’s right to express their gender identity and sexual orientation without fear of discrimination or harassment. For more than a decade, Target has been a vocal ally in that work. As we mark the beginning of Pride Month, we urge you to put Pride-related merchandise back on the shelves,” it continued.
Notice how the Democrat AGs portrayed frustrated/outraged parents as “a small group of extreme individuals.”
Target responded to the letter by evidently doing nothing — there’s been no further change in policy since the “Pride” items were removed. This in turn apparently upset Democrats, who went ahead and sent yet another letter to Cornell on June 16th.
Led this time by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, in this letter the AGs bemoaned “recent events in Target stores” and continued to lecture the retailer about the need to embrace “Pride.”
We can never allow violence and intimidation to turn back the clock on progress for the LGBTQ+ community. ⁰
I’m co-leading a multistate coalition of Attorneys General to urge @Target to support the LGBTQ+ community and resist giving into the demands of a harassment campaign. pic.twitter.com/Mvf1hlblrc— Andrea Joy Campbell (@MassAGO) June 20, 2023
“We understand Target recently pulled some Pride merchandise from its shelves out of concern for worker and customer safety. While we understand the basis for this action, we are also concerned it sends a message that those who engage in hateful and disruptive conduct can cause even large corporations to succumb to their bullying, and that they have the power to determine when LGBTQIA+ consumers will feel comfortable in Target stores—or anywhere in society,” the letter read.
“Though we do not doubt Target’s longstanding commitment to LGBTQIA+ equality, and though we laud your intention to keep your staff members and customers safe, we fear your choice to pull Pride merchandise demonstrates that intentional violence and intimidation can set back the march for social progress and LGBTQIA+ equality, which as we have noted is already under intense attack nationwide,” it added.
The AGs continued their letter by pointing Target to the states’ “many resources to support Target’s efforts to protect its staff and customers in the face of hate-based intimidation, harassment, threats, or attacks.”
In other words, they pointed Target to state laws that might be useful.
“Massachusetts, for instance, assigns liability under its public accommodations law not just to the owners or operators of those accommodations, but to any individual—including other customers or members of the public—who discriminates against others’ use and enjoyment of those accommodations on the basis of a protected characteristic like sexual orientation or gender identity,” the letter read.
“Similarly, the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act empowers the Commonwealth to seek injunctive relief against anyone who interferes with others’ constitutional and statutory rights by means of threats, intimidation, or coercion,” it continued.
The letter concluded with an implicit threat:
Here’s the veiled threat towards Target in the letter released yesterday by AG Keith Ellison and a group of 15 Attorneys General pic.twitter.com/Blf9H8ODdR
— Action 4 Liberty (@action_liberty) June 21, 2023
“While these laws certainly do not create a legal obligation for retailers to offer any particular merchandise or create any particular displays, they do demand that customers be treated equally. In this context, we urge Target to be mindful of its obligations under these laws as it makes decisions as to how to respond to backlash against its Pride merchandise,” the letter read.
Some critics responded to the letters by wondering why these same Democrat AGs had failed to show the same interest in “helping” during the deadly Black Lives Matter riots of 2020.
Look:
Where was all the support and protection for @target from AG Keith Ellison in the summer of 2020? pic.twitter.com/tyGwqR34oX
— Thomas Blunt❄️ (@MistedTwister) June 22, 2023
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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