How America's culture war forced Target to remove Pride products from its shelves

Target introduced its new Pride Collection of products at the beginning of May but fierce customer backlash prompted the retail giant to pull some of that merchandise from its shelves out of concern for the safety of their employees. So what’s really going on?

There were more than 2000 Pride-themed products on offer from Target this year based on reporting from Reuters and that included everything from clothing and books to home furnishing and music. There’s just one problem, the big box store’s customers are livid. 

Not every customer was complaining about the Pride product line but there had been enough of a stir at some stores that Target’s corporate leadership decided it was best to remove some of the products that caused the biggest issues with some of the store’s shoppers. 

"Since introducing this year's collection, we've experienced threats impacting our team members' sense of safety and wellbeing while at work," Target wrote in a statement. 

"Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior," the statement added. But is this the first time Target’s faced Pride issues?

Yes, it actually is according to Target. In its statement, the retail chain noted that it has been shelving a variety of Pride products for over a decade. So what gives this year?

You might think the growing culture war between America’s political right and left is to blame for the situation at Target, and you’d be absolutely correct in that assumption.

Wall Street Journal writer Sarah Nassauer broke down the issues at hand in a recent article on how Target became the center of the right’s fury and it had a lot to do with the idea that the Minneapolis-based retailer was “influencing” parents and their children. 

“Conservative politicians and commenters have promoted the idea that parents and children are being influenced to affirm children’s belief that they were born the wrong gender and therefore are being urged to transition to a different gender,” Nassauer said. 

“Online critics of Target’s Pride Month apparel homed in on a transgender-friendly swimsuit with a label highlighting its ‘tuck-friendly construction,’ with some saying the product was being marketed to children,” The Wall Street Journal reporter added. 

However, there was a major problem with this theory according to Nassauer, as the swimwear in question at Target is only sold in adult sizes. But she noted the misconception still spread online.

As criticism mounted, Target announced it was moving its Pride collection from the front of its stores in some states located in the South according to Nassauer, and then eventually issued its statement about removing some of the most politically charged items from its retail stores completely. 

This move prompted a backlash from the other side of the political spectrum with voices from all levels of society jumping into the debate to denounce the company’s decision to revoke any LGBTQ+ merchandise from its stores in the United States. 

“CEO of Target Brian Cornell selling out the LGBTQ+ community to extremists is a real profile in courage,” California Governor Gavin Newsom tweeted according to the Hill. 

“This isn’t just a couple stores in the South. There is a systematic attack on the gay community happening across the country. Wake up America. This doesn’t stop here. You’re black? You’re Asian? You’re Jewish? You’re a woman? You’re next,” Newsom added.

Reactions from both the left and right revealed just how politically charged some issues in the United States are. Along with the very real fact that the culture war is now everywhere in American society and we’ll have to wait to see if anything else comes of this issue.