Friday, July 4, 2014

Target goes gun-free, becoming biggest US retailer asking customers to disarm

 
 
Target goes gun-free, becoming biggest US retailer asking customers to disarmBy Patrik Jonsson
The Christian Science Monitor
Moms Demand Action has launched online petitions against corporations after members of open-carry groups brought loaded assault-style firearms into stores. In the case of Target, 400,000 signatures were collected.

The decision by Target, one of America’s largest retailers, to ask its customers to please not carry firearms to its stores anymore marks another surprising victory for gun control groups, which have rallied for attention and impact after the 2012 Sandy Hook school massacre.

Moms Demand Action, a part of the Everytown for Gun Safety consortium, which is funded by former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, now has six notches in its belt after targeting major corporations with online petitions and protests. In the case of Target, 400,000 signatures were collected. Chili’s, Starbucks, Chipotle, Sonic, and Jack in the Box have all responded to petitions by specifically asking customers to shop and/or eat unarmed.

Target is by far the biggest retailer to date to concede to the demands of Moms Demand Action. Target’s competitor Wal-Mart is the country’s largest firearms seller and has noted that it doesn’t plan to make any policy changes on gun carry.

The petitions have come in response to demonstrations by so-called open-carry groups where members bring loaded assault-style firearms into stores. Those tactics have sparked a rare public backlash against public gun carry and introspection among gun owners in a country where states recently have, on the whole, pushed laws strengthening gun and self-defense rights.

To be sure, gun rights groups point out that some recent corporate policy changes are meaningless since they don’t actually ban guns, but simply request nicely that customers don’t bring them. But after the pressure on corporations like Starbucks and now Target to change their policy on guns, it’s clear that what Moms Demand Action calls its “common-sense” approach on the Second Amendment is winning converts, and at least shifting the weight slightly on the long-running tug of war between pro-gun lobbyists like the National Rifle Association and gun control and antiviolence organizations.

“Moms everywhere were horrified to see images of people carrying loaded assault rifles down the same aisles where we shop for diapers and toys,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action, after Target’s announcement Wednesday. “... Target recognized that moms are a powerful customer base and political force – and you can respect the 2nd Amendment and the safety of customers at the same time."

The open-carry demonstrations and ensuing petitions have been discomfiting for US corporations, which have in the past mostly allowed local ordinances to dictate whether customers could bring guns to their stores. Target, especially, is in a tough spot after alienating some of its customer base with its handling of a massive data breach that took place around Thanksgiving last year.

Coming out with an antigun policy is a potentially risky move that could alienate large swaths of the buying public. But in the end, Target could have been more worried about the effects of a month-long #OffTarget social media campaign, urging mothers to shop at other stores until Target changed its policy. The retailer’s stock price rose slightly Wednesday on the news.

“This is a complicated issue, but it boils down to a simple belief: Bringing firearms to Target creates an environment that is at odds with the family-friendly shopping and work experience we strive to create,” Target interim CEO John Mulligan said on the company blog. “[S]tarting today we will … respectfully request that guests not bring firearms to Target – even in communities where it is permitted by law.”

Target has 1,700 stores in the United States and made about $70 billion in revenue last year. It doesn’t sell firearms.

The NRA, in a blog post in May, chastised open-carry demonstrations as “weird” and ultimately damaging to gun rights. But chief NRA lobbyist Chris Cox later walked back those comments, saying that calling open-carry protests “weird or somehow not normal was a mistake.”

After Target’s announcement, at least some gun owners acknowledged that the move suggests gun control groups are winning this battle.

“They have been generating outrage and delivering it to companies who will listen. We have been sitting on blogs complaining about [Open Carry Texas], open carry, the state of Texas, and anything else we can think of to make ourselves feel superior while the antis were – quite effectively – lobbying for a policy change,” writes “Dave,” a commenter on the well-read “Shall Not Be Questioned” blog. “Their strategy was superior. [T]hat’s a bitter pill, but the fact is the other side beat us at a game we have traditionally owned.”

2012 Sandy Hook school massacre
2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School was a mass shootings 28 killed, including gunman.

Note: Newtown (CT) is the location of the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Martin Feinberg is a Newtown (CT) resident, and Stephen A. Feinberg is his son.
Stephen A. Feinberg is Martin Feinberg’s son, the CEO for Cerberus Capital Management L.P., and a trustee at the Public Theater.
Rumor Control: The Truth About Cerberus/Freedom Group
Posted on July 20, 2012
An old rumor has once again resurfaced alleging that Cerberus--the private equity firm that owns Freedom group, a holding company that in turn owns a number of firearms manufacturers, including Remington, Marlin, Bushmaster, and DPMS--is in some way tied to George Soros.
Cerberus Capital Management L.P. is the owner of the Freedom Group.
Bushmaster Firearms is a Freedom Group brand.
Remington is a Freedom Group brand.
Michael P.C. Carns is a director at the Freedom Group, and was a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).
Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank), the Human Rights Watch, and the American Constitution Society.
George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations, a board member for the International Crisis Group, a director emeritus at Refugees International, was a benefactor at the Human Rights Watch, the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Human Rights Watch, Refugees International, the Committee for Economic Development, the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Aspen Institute (think tank).
Joanne Leedom-Ackerman was a director at the Human Rights Watch, a reporter for the Christian Science Monitor, a board member for the International Crisis Group, and a director at Refugees International.
Stephen W. Sanger is a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development, and was a director at the Target Corporation.
Vernon E. Jordan Jr. was a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development, a director at Gannett Co., Inc., is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), a director at the Target Corporation, a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg (think tank) and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).
Solomon D. Trujillo was a director at Gannett Co., Inc., a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank), and is a director at the Target Corporation.
Cyrus F. Freidheim Jr. is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
James S. Crown is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank).
Lester Crown was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank), and is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
Mellody L. Hobson is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and a director at the Starbucks Corporation.
Richard M. Daley is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, a director at the Coca-Cola Company, and Michelle Obama was his staffer.
NRA-ILA Richard M. Daley’s Gun Control History)
Mary E. Minnick was the EVP for the Coca-Cola Company, and is a director at the Target Corporation.
Mary N. Dillon was the EVP for the Coca-Cola Company, a director at the Target Corporation, and is a Commercial Club of Chicago.
R. Eden Martin is the president of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and counsel at Sidley Austin LLP
Michelle Obama was a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP, Mayor Richard M. Daley’s staffer, and her brother is Craig M. Robinson.
Faith Elizabeth Gay was an attorney at Sidley Austin LLP, is a trustee at the Public Theater, and a director at the American Constitution Society.
Stephen A. Feinberg is a trustee at the Public Theater,
Martin Feinberg’s son, and the CEO for Cerberus Capital Management L.P.
Barack Obama was an intern at Sidley Austin LLP.
Newton N. Minow is a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP, and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
Penny S. Pritzker is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, the secretary at the U.S. Department of Commerce for the Barack Obama administration, married to Bryan Traubert, was the national finance chair, fundraiser for the 2008 Barack Obama presidential campaign, a co-chair for the 2009 Barack Obama inaugural committee, a fundraiser, national co-chair for the 2012 Barack Obama presidential campaign, a contributor for the 2013 Barack Obama inaugural committee, the host for the Barack Obama fund-raising dinner, 7/2/2008, and Craig M. Robinson’s basketball coach for the children's team.
Bryan Traubert is married to Penny S. Pritzker, and a director at the National Park Foundation.
Ken Salazar was the chairman for the National Park Foundation, the secretary at the U.S. Department of the Interior for the Barack Obama administration, and is a director at the Target Corporation.
Elizabeth Frawley Bagley is a director at the National Park Foundation, and an advisory council member for the Acumen Fund.
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Acumen Fund.
Andrea Soros is a director at the Acumen Fund, and George Soros’s daughter.
George Soros is Andrea Soros’s father, was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society, and a benefactor at the Harlem Children's Zone.
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Harlem Children's Zone, and the Robin Hood Foundation.
Michael R. Bloomberg was a benefactor at the Harlem Children's Zone, a donor for the Robin Hood Foundation, the New York (NY) mayor, a donor for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and is a co-chair for Mayors Against Illegal Guns.
NRA-ILA (Michael Bloomberg’s Gun Control History)
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Acumen Fund, the Committee for Economic Development, the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Aspen Institute (think tank).
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Committee for Economic Development, the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Aspen Institute (think tank).
George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society,
Stephen W. Sanger is a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development, and was a director at the Target Corporation.
Vernon E. Jordan Jr. was a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development, a director at Gannett Co., Inc., is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), a director at the Target Corporation, a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg (think tank) and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).
Sheryl K. Sandberg was a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and is a director at the Starbucks Corporation.
Solomon D. Trujillo was a director at Gannett Co., Inc., a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank), and is a director at the Target Corporation.







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