Friday, January 31, 2025

Civil Rights Activists Call for Target Boycott After Retailer Backs Off DEI (Target, Walmart, Costco, LGBTQ, Urban League, NAACP & Soros Funding, All Networking)

Civil Rights Activists Call for Target Boycott After Retailer Backs Off DEI (Target, Walmart, Costco, LGBTQ, Urban League, NAACP & Soros Funding, All Networking)

Newsmax.com

Thursday, 30 January 2025 04:29 PM EST

https://www.newsmax.com/politics/target-diversity-equity-inclusion-minneapolis-civil-rights/2025/01/30/id/1197213/

Civil rights activists gathered outside the headquarters of Target Corp. on Thursday to call for a national boycott of the retailing giant over its decision to phase out its diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

Target announced last Friday that it would join competitor Walmart and a number of other prominent American brands in scaling back their DEI initiatives, which have come under attack from conservatives and the new White House of President Donald Trump.

Nekima Levy Armstrong, a veteran civil rights lawyer in Minneapolis and founder of the Racial Justice Network, joined other local activists and their supporters at a news conference to urge people to begin the boycott on Saturday, the first day of Black History Month. Many of the participants were regular Target shoppers until now, she said.

Levy Armstrong said they were “stunned” that Target, which increased its commitment to building a more diverse workforce in the aftermath of the police killing of George Floyd, a Black man, in Minneapolis in 2020, backed away from its support of racial equity.

“We thought that they would hold the line. We thought that they would continue to stand for the values that we all hold dear,” she said. "But instead they acted cowardly, and they made the decision to bow down to the Trump administration. Well, we are here today saying we will not bow down. We will not step back, and we will not turn around.”

Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on Islamic-American Relations, said that as a company based in the city where Floyd's murder sparked a national reckoning with racial injustice, Target must be called out.

“We here in Minneapolis today, the good people of the state, are saying to our friends all over the country, ‘If you were moved to do something good after the murder of George Floyd, it is time for you to stand up and boycott Target,’” Hussein said.

The organizers of the boycott include local Black Lives Matter groups. During the boycott announcement, some speakers cut up their distinctive red Target charge cards, while others called on DEI supporters to shop at Costco, which reaffirmed its commitment to DEI last week.

Despite the anger with Target, the news conference-turned-rally took on a festive atmosphere, with a New Orleans-style brass band playing protest songs like Bob Marley's “Get Up, Stand Up.” Participants circled up for a prayer before the speeches began.

Target, which long was viewed as a strong advocate for the rights of Black and LGBTQ+ people, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday on the call for a boycott. But in a memo to employees last week, Kiera Fernandez, Target’s chief community impact and equity officer, described the company's decision to retire its diversity goals as a “next chapter” in the company’s human resource and customer engagement strategy.

“And as a retailer that serves millions of consumers every day, we understand the importance of staying in step with the evolving external landscape, now and in the future,” she wrote.

Levy Armstrong said Target has not reached out to her or other local Black leaders. She said they expected more from Target, and now feel like everything it had done in support of people of color was just window dressing. The starting point for any conversation, she said, would be for the company reverse its decision immediately.

“Target knows what its presence and its commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion means to this community," Levy Armstrong said. “So that is why we are focusing on Target first. But that does not mean that those other businesses should not also be held accountable. All of those businesses should be held accountable, and they should not have access to our dollars.”

Speakers also called on long-established civil rights groups that have benefited from Target’s philanthropy, such as the NAACP and the Urban League, to join the opposition to Target’s decision. Levy Armstrong and Hussein said they plan to partner with other national organizations to get the word out about the boycott and to take other steps they were not yet ready to share publicly.

Ever since calls for a boycott began circulating on social media, the founders of several Black-owned businesses that sell their products in Target stores or through the company's online platforms have expressed concern that a broad boycott might hurt them. They included the owners of hair care brands The Doux and Camille Rose, and the cosmetics brand Lip Bar.

The Minneapolis organizers said Black consumers and their white allies can continue to support those companies while cutting Target out.

“We are asking people to go on their websites and buy directly from those Black companies, because Target will not see a single one of our Black dollars,” Levy Armstrong said.

Connecting the Dots:

Charles T. Munger is a director at the Costco Wholesale Corporation and the vice chairman for Berkshire Hathaway Inc.  

Susan L. Decker is a director at Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and a director at the Costco Wholesale Corporation.

William H. Gates III is a director at Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and a co-chair for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Jeffrey S. Raikes is a director at the Costco Wholesale Corporation and the CEO for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

William H. Gates Sr. is a director at the Costco Wholesale Corporation and a co-chair for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank) and the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund.

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Vernon E. Jordan Jr. is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), a senior director at the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, a director at the Target Corporation and was the president of the National Urban League

Hugh B. Price was the president & CEO for the National Urban League and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Henry Louis Gates Jr. was an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and is a director at the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund.

James A. Johnson is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and a director at the Target Corporation.

Stephen W. Sanger was a director at the Target Corporation and is a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Committee for Economic Development.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Committee for Economic Development and the Aspen Institute (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank).

Solomon D. Trujillo was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank) and a director at the Target Corporation.

Shirley M. Hufstedler was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank) and a secretary at the U.S. Department of Education.

Kevin Jennings was an assistant deputy secretary for the U.S. Department of Education and the founder & executive director for the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network.

James Cole Jr. is the general counsel for the U.S. Department of Education and was a director at the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund and the Center for American Progress.

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society and a supporter for the Center for American Progress.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. was a funder for the Center for American Progress.

Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP was a funder for the Center for American Progress.

Vernon E. Jordan Jr. is a senior counsel for Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP, a director at the Target Corporation, a senior director at the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and was the president of the National Urban League.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund and the Brookings Institution (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Hugh B. Price was a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and the president & CEO for the National Urban League.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

William H. Gates Sr. is a co-chair for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and a director at the Costco Wholesale Corporation.

Jeffrey S. Raikes is the CEO for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and a director at the Costco Wholesale Corporation.

William H. Gates III is a co-chair for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and a director at Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

Susan L. Decker is a director at Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and a director at the Costco Wholesale Corporation

Charles T. Munger is the vice chairman for Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and a director at the Costco Wholesale Corporation.

Resources: Past Research

Costco Hit With Boycott Calls Over DEI Program (Connecting the Dots: Costco, Berkshire Hathaway Inc., The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The Nuclear Threat Initiative & Soros Funding, All Networking) (Past Research on Costco)

Wednesday, January 1, 2025

https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2025/01/costco-hit-with-boycott-calls-over-dei.html

Civil Rights Group Slams Walmart Decision on DEI Initiatives (The National Urban League, Wal-Mart, CBS, Hunter Biden, Kamala Harris & Soros Funding, All Networking) (Past Research on the National Urban League)

Tuesday, December 3, 2024

https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2024/12/civil-rights-group-slams-walmart.html

Smaller Bites – Connecting the Dots: Utah, The Target Corporation, LGBTQ & Soros Funding, All Networking (Past Research on the Target Corporation)

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2023/05/smaller-bites-connecting-dots-utah.html

DeSantis Sends 2 Private Planes of Illegals to Martha's Vineyard (Connecting the Dots: Martha's Vineyard & Soros Funded Think Tanks All Networking) (Past Research on the NAACP)

Saturday, September 17, 2022

https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2022/09/desantis-sends-2-private-planes-of.html

Bill Gates: Spoke With Trump, 'Amazing Things' for Global Health (Connecting the Dot: Bill Gates, The Gates Foundation, Mark Zuckerberg, global health, Obamacare, FDA, Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, The Wall Street Journal, 60 Minutes, The Breakthrough Energy Coalition, Facebook & Soros Funding, All Networking) (Past Research on the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation)

Sunday, January 19, 2025

https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2025/01/bill-gates-spoke-with-trump-amazing.html

SCHOOL BOARD CALLED OUT - ABSOLUTE PROOF - THEY ARE DOING IT FOR THE MONEY (Past Research on the U.S. Department of Education and the Chicago (IL) Board of Education) (Past Research on the U.S. Department of Education)

Sunday, September 26, 2021

https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2021/09/school-board-called-out-absolute-proof_26.html

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