While the efforts were not overly successful, Target faced boycotts — more than once — over its moves to be inclusive.
The chain faced a backlash from conservative customers over its decision to allow shoppers to use the bathrooms that matched their gender identities rather than their birth genders.
In 2023 the chain also had to remove its Pride Month collection from stores because it believed selling the items put its frontline employees in danger.
Related: Carnival Cruise Line forced to make beverage package change
Walt Disney (DIS) has faced a right-wing backlash simply for including diverse characters in its movies and films. That has led Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has made Disney has favorite target in his so-called war on woke, to accuse the company of "sexualizing children."
Disney CEO Bob Iger has called that claim "preposterous and inaccurate."
Bud Light, of course, faced a massive and incredibly damaging boycott after it made a small marketing deal with the transgender social-media influencer Dylan Mulvaney. It wasn't a TV commercial or even a significant deal.
Mulvaney was hired to promote to the LGBTQ+ community that she liked to drink the Anheuser-Busch InBev (BUD) brand. This, for some reason, outraged Kid Rock, who kicked off a massive boycott of Bud Light, which saw the brand lose about 25% of its sales on what appears to be a long-term basis.
Making any comment on transgender issues puts a company at risk of backlash. Carnival Cruise Line Brand Ambassador John Heald, however, recently addressed a key topic for transgender inclusion on cruises.
Image source: Carnival Cruise Line
Carnival shares a key policy
Cruise lines are generally inclusive. Carnival, Royal Caribbean, MSC Cruise, Virgin Voyages, and other major cruise lines all have LGBTQ+ meetup events on their cruises. In a broad sense, when you bring 2,000 to 6,000 people together on a cruise ship (or really anywhere), you're going to get a diverse crowd.
All the cruise lines work hard to make their ships safe spaces where people can enjoy their vacations even though the person sitting next to them at the pool deck may have very different political views.
Carnival room attendants, much like Royal Caribbean's, are given the names of their passengers as they appear on the cruise manifest.
It's common for your room steward (and any employee who sees your name when you make a purchase using your room key) to address you by your first name. Usually, they precede your name with a "Mr.," Ms." or "Mrs." Some people, however, take issue with that and Heald shared his thoughts.
"Yesterday somebody mentioned they did not want to be referred to by their first name by the crew. This particular post received over 50 different likes or thumbs-up things," he wrote.
He then shared how passengers can correct that.
"So I thought it best I say again that if you do not wish to be addressed by your first name by our wonderful crewmembers please simply tell them. Writing to me after you’ve left the ship complaining means there is nothing I can do to help you," he said.
"If you have a problem with being referred to in the wrong way, for any reason, please speak to the crew, they will gladly listen. They will smile, and they will address you as you wish. It really is that simple."
Carnival talks about a transgender issue
Names are a particularly challenging issue in the transgender community. Carnival, Heald explained, makes every effort to be inclusive and supportive, but crew members can act only off of the information they have in front of them.
"In response to Joyce, and I’m sure there will be a few others in the same situation. If you have a transgender child, and they have not legally changed their name, then at first, the cabin attendant is going to call them by the name they have been given on the manifest," he wrote.
That mistake can't be avoided, and the cruise line will quickly correct it as soon as crew members are made aware.
"So, please don’t get angry, it’s not their fault. It really isn’t. But I do understand that it’s upsetting, and we certainly do not want to misgender” them," he wrote.
"So, again this is just a simple solution of explaining to the cabin attendant and any other crewmember how they wish to be referred to, and as always my wonderful wonderful colleagues will comply and make everyone smile. Thank you for your understanding."
