A conservative legal nonprofit led by former Trump senior adviser Stephen Miller has sued retailer Target, claiming that the company failed to anticipate a backlash against a Pride-themed collection of merchandise sold in May.
The lawsuit, filed in Florida federal court, is on behalf of investor Brian Craig, who owned $28,000 in Target stock that he said saw a major decline in value, as the retailer lost an alleged $10bn in market value the month the collection was released.
The suit claims the company failed to anticipate “social and political risks” associated with the LGBTQ+-themed collection and alleges the company “misrepresented its oversight because the board monitored only one side” when it came to factoring social issues into business decisions.
“Target embraced the radical transgender agenda with its children-and-family-themed ‘Pride’ marketing and sales campaign — the corporation’s infamous ‘Pride’ collection,” a statement from the group about the suit reads, adding “included clothing for young children with rainbow Mickey Mouse symbols, LGBT-themed bibs and onesies for babies, and ‘tuck-friendly’ bathing suits for ‘transgender women.’ This predictably caused more than a $12 billion collapse in share value, the largest stock price decline in over 20 years.”
The Independent has contacted Target for comment.
Mr Miller, as well as a number of prominent conservative commentators, encouraged followers to protest the Target collection.
“Just say no to Target,” he wrote in one May post on X.
“Woke Corporations are destroying America,” he added in another post that month about the campaign. One message on his social media simply read, “Don’t shop Target.”
The company has been making Pride-themed collections with little incident for over a decade, but the conservative activism surrounding 2023’s edition seems to have changed things.
In May, the company pulled some Pride-themed merchandise from the shelves, citing “confrontational behaviour” from customers.
“Since introducing this year’s collection, we’ve experienced threats impacting our team embers’ sense of safety and well-being while at work,” Target said 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 company added. “Our focus now is on moving forward with our continuing commitment to the LGBTQIA+ community and standing with them as we celebrate Pride Month and throughout the year.”
It’s not the first time Mr Miller’s group has waded into the growing culture war surrounding LGBTQ+ issues.
In 2022, the group spent millions on ads attacking the Biden administration’s policies towards LGTBQ+ people, claiming “the Biden administration is pushing radical gender experiments on children.”
