Target has been accused of racism after one of its stores placed the darker shades of makeup in a security box while leaving the lighter tones unprotected.
Eli Levi, 21, of New York City, was shopping at the popular department store chain when he noticed that darker shades of the Versed Luminizing Glow Drops were kept in a sealed plastic container to deter theft, while the lighter ones sat on the shelf with no protection .
He made a video of it and uploaded it to TikTok, slamming the store and calling it “racism at its finest.”
The video quickly went viral, garnering more than 500,000 views in a matter of days, and many people on the internet were outraged.
“Target, please explain to me why the lighter shades come out perfect while the darker shades are boxed and safety sealed,” he said in the clip.
Target has been accused of racism after one of its stores placed darker shades of makeup in a security box while leaving the lighter tones unprotected
Eli Levi, 21, of New York City, was shopping at the popular department store chain when he noticed the security measures and uploaded a video to TikTok calling it “racism at its finest.”
He pointed out that the darker tones of the Versed Luminizing Glow Drops were stored in a sealed plastic container (left), while the lighter ones sat unprotected on the shelf (right).
“This is racism at its best in Target’s beauty department.”
The product is available in two different shades: pure gold (which has sat freely on the shelf) and pure bronze (which has been caged), and the latter is a visibly darker shade.
However, on its website, the brand insists that the Glow Drops are actually designed for all skin tones.
“Choose between Sheer Bronzed and Sheer Golden (or not – both shades work well with almost all skin tones and can be mixed together),” reads the brand’s product description.
Many people were appalled by Target’s actions and took to the comments section to share their dismay, tag the company and ask for a response.
“@Target do better,” wrote an angry TikToker.
“Yeah, they’ve been getting away with that for years. #Shopsmall,” added another.
Someone else said, ‘Very mad at Target for that, really.’
“What the hell is Target doing?” asked another person.
‘@Target explain yourself!’ read another comment. A sixth agreed: “The way I gasped. @Target you have to explain something to make bruh.’
has reached out to a Target spokesperson for comment.
However, others defended the store, claiming that its actions had nothing to do with race, as stores tend to lock up the most commonly stolen items, no matter what they are.
Many people were appalled by Target’s actions and took to the comments section to share their dismay, tag the company and ask for a response
However, others defended the store, claiming that its actions had nothing to do with race, as stores tend to lock up the most commonly stolen items, no matter what they are
“As someone who has locked these boxes, he is locking up products that are most likely to be stolen,” wrote one user.
“No racism,” said another. ‘It’s loss prevention.’
“I’m not saying this isn’t racism, but I’m pretty sure they only secure things that get stolen the most,” added another.
A fourth comment read, “My guess is that the security boxes are associated with items by SKU from a loss prevention protocol, but I still think it has a really bad look.”
“Don’t stores include the products that get stolen the most, no matter what it is?” asked another user.
“Probably unrelated to the shadow, but the most stolen item. Dark shades cover more than one race or ethnicity. You took race, why?’ read another comment.
Another person agreed: “It has nothing to do with race, it’s all about actual numerical logistics.”
It turns out this isn’t the first time this has happened. In 2019, Target came under fire for a similar situation after someone tweeted a photo showing only the darkest shades of Elf Cosmetics foundations marked with anti-theft stickers at one of the store’s locations.
A year later, another woman shared a video of the sunscreen aisle at her local Target to show how the “black girl sunscreen” was hidden behind a pillar despite ample shelf space.
Back in June 2020, Walmart also received backlash after a man named Jesús A. Rodríguez shared photos of hair products sold mostly to black customers locked in boxes.
In 2019, Target came under fire for a similar situation after someone tweeted a photo showing only the darkest shades of Elf Cosmetics Foundations tagged with anti-theft stickers
Out of sight: Another woman shared video of the sunscreen aisle at her local destination to show how the “black girl sunscreen” was hidden behind a pillar
Back in June 2020, Walmart also received backlash after a man named Jesús A. Rodríguez shared photos of hair products sold mostly to black customers locked in boxes
Making a change: The audit prompted Walmart to announce it would discontinue the practice
They were stored behind glass that had to be opened by a store employee, while other generic shampoos and conditioners were left open on the shelves.
“It’s more than just the police,” he captioned the post, which has since been retweeted nearly 200,000 times.
The audit prompted Walmart to announce it was ending the practice.
They tweeted at the time: “Jesús, we are sensitive to the issue and understand your concerns.
“We have made the decision to no longer place multicultural hair care and beauty products in locked boxes.
“This practice was recently used in about a dozen of our 4,700 stores across the country.”
“As a retailer that serves millions of customers from all backgrounds every day, Walmart does not tolerate discrimination of any kind,” Lorenzo Lopez, a Walmart spokesman, told the New York Times in an email.
He said certain items have been locked up at a limited number of Walmart locations to “deter shoplifters from some products like electronics, automobiles, cosmetics and other personal care products,” noting that other retailers have similar practices.