New York | Portal
US retailer Target, which launched its Pride collection earlier in May, is withdrawing some products from its stores after customers reacted that the move was to protect employee safety.
Target Corp offers more than 2,000 products including apparel, books, music and home furnishings as part of the LGBTQIA+ Pride Collection. Items include Gender Fluid mugs, Queer yearround calendars, and books for kids ages 28 called Bye Bye, Binary, Pride 1,2,3, and I’m not a girl”.
“Since the launch of this year’s collection, we have faced threats that impact the sense of security and wellbeing of our team members at work,” Target said in a statement.
“Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been the focus of the greatest confrontational behavior,” the retailer said.
Target has been celebrating Pride Month for over a decade. But this year’s collection has led to an escalation of clashes between customers and employees and incidents of Pride merchandise being thrown on the ground, Target spokeswoman Kayla Castaneda said.
Target’s move follows a conservative backlash against Bud Light after the AnheuserBusch brewery, along with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, promoted the drink on social media last month.
While several Pride Collection products are under review, only LGBTQIA+ branding, Rebound, which has come under criticism for its association with British designer Erik Carnell, is currently being removed.
Carnell was banned from social media for creating products featuring images of pentagrams, horned skulls, and other satanicthemed products.
According to Castaneda, Target is also reviewing certain transgender swimwear and children’s products, but has not yet made a decision on those products.