Target has been under fire from both conservatives and progressives. After scaling back its DEI programs and pulling back on Pride merchandise displays, the company faced a wave of right-wing attacks — then drew just as much heat from LGBTQ advocates and allies for caving to pressure.
In response, some Pride festivals across the country have declined Target’s sponsorship. But locally, Stonewall Pride in Wilton Manors is accepting the support — sparking a fiery debate on social media.
On the Facebook group What’s Happening on the Drive – Wilton Manors, the question was blunt: Should Stonewall take the money, or kick Target to the curb?
Barry Nevins said, “They have bowed down to a fascist dictator, and you’re going to take their cowardly bribe? ... Disavow their homophobic, racist market share and stop pandering to our oppressors.”
Mike Sanders is more blunt. “Absolutely not. Tell them to kick rocks.”
Many responses were a version of “take the money but shame them for rejecting DEI.”
Is Any Of It Real?
While community concerns are very real, the original outrage may have been manufactured as part of a massive disinformation campaign. A new study from Israeli tech firm Cyabra, reported by USA Today, used AI to analyze thousands of posts on X from Jan. 1-April 21.
Cyabra says a whopping 27% of the social media accounts sampled were fake and “contributed significantly to the viral backlash.” It also found a 764% surge of inauthentic sentiment.
“We’ve seen this kind of behavior in disinformation campaigns tied to elections, brands and social movements around the world,” Cyabra spokeswoman Jill Burkes said. “When fake profiles move in sync, mimic real users and amplify both sides of a divisive issue, it’s a clear sign of manipulation. That’s what we saw here.”
Real Damage
Regardless of how the uproar started, the impact on Target’s bottom line is very real. The company reported a 2.8% drop in year-over-year sales, down to $23.85 billion for the first quarter of fiscal year 2025.
“We faced several additional headwinds this quarter,” CEO Brian Cornell told analysts, “including five consecutive months of declining consumer confidence, uncertainty regarding potential tariffs, and the reaction to the updates we shared on [DEI] in January.”
Among the most vocal critics is Pastor Jamal Bryant of Atlanta. After Target’s DEI rollback, he called for a nationwide boycott — and renewed that call in the lead-up to the fifth anniversary of George Floyd’s killing on May 25.
