Tell Target: Do not give in to anti-LGBTQ+ bullies!
The petition to Target executives reads:
Now is the time to double down on your commitment to celebrating the LGBTQ+ community. Caving to bigoted fanatics by hiding or removing Pride merchandise from store shelves at a time when anti-LGBTQ+ legislation is sweeping the country only proves to customers that your perceived allyship is nothing more than opportunistic rainbow-washing. Immediately put Pride merchandise back on store shelves and protect your team members from abuse and harassment!
Why is this important?
Target casts itself as an inclusive corporation and has profited handsomely from the growing widespread public acceptance of LGBTQ+ people.
At a time when bigoted lawmakers are introducing and instituting hundreds of anti-LGBTQ+ laws and states like Florida are restricting access to transgender health care, forcing many trans people to detransition, Target should be doubling down on its commitment to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community. Caving now only proves to consumers that Target's perceived LGBTQ+ allyship was nothing more than opportunistic rainbow-washing.
June is Pride Month, and we have so much to celebrate in terms of the progress we've made as a country, such as marriage equality and increased LGBTQ+ representation in mainstream media and even in state legislatures and Congress. But this progress has also brought intense backlash from bigots who oppose us, our families, and our progress as a country.
Our LGBTQ+ siblings in the South--including youth--are experiencing intense discrimination and hatred in the way of hostile bills, book bans, and an uptick in hate crimes and harassment, including in schools. Heartbreakingly, as many as 45% of LGBTQ+ youth have contemplated suicide in the last year, and a whopping 60% who wanted mental health care were unable to get it.
For our kids' sake, we must never ever give in to hate. We know from history that when we advocate for ourselves and our rights, we win. We also know that public pressure can make a huge difference. Years ago, UltraViolet members pressured Target to raise wages for its workers--and we won!
Target's latest decision to display Pride merchandise in the back of certain southern stores and discontinue some products catering to the trans community is deeply troubling. We can't allow Target executives to hear only from bigoted fanatics. Add your name now to the petition to tell Target executives that we'll back them up if they proudly display Pride merchandise and put it back on shelves!