On Friday, Target held an “emergency” meeting with some store managers, directing them to move LGBT Pride merchandise to the back of the store to avoid a “Bud Light situation,” according to TheBlaze.
The media outlet confirmed that rural Target stores in South Carolina, Arkansas, and Georgia had relocated their Pride sections from the front of the store to the back. However, not all store locations across the country were instructed to move the merchandise.
Target has recently come under fire for selling LGBT-themed clothing for children, including “tuck-friendly” bathing suits and Pride onesies and rompers for newborn babies.
Some Pride merchandise includes a label that states, “Thoughtfully fit on multiple body types and gender expressions.” The retailer sparked calls for boycotts when it was recently revealed that it sells products from a designer who appears to support satanism, violence, and drug use.
A Target insider, who has worked for the company for nearly two decades, informed Fox News Digital that “emergency” calls were made on Friday to some managers who were instructed to relocate the store’s LGBT sections immediately.
“We were given 36 hours, told to take all of our Pride stuff, the entire section, and move it into a section that’s a third the size. From the front of the store to the back of the store, you can’t have anything on mannequins and no large signage,” the Target insider said.
“We call our customers ‘guests,’ there is an outrage on their part. This year, it is just exponentially more than any other year,” the Target insider continued. “I think given the current situation with Bud Light, the company is terrified of a Bud Light situation.”
The insider, who has worked at the retailer for almost two decades, said Target rarely makes such hasty decisions. They said Friday’s call began with roughly 10 minutes on “how to deal with team member safety” because of the amount of backlash the Pride merchandise has generated, noting that Target Asset Protect & Corporate Security teams were present on the call.
“The call was super quick, it was 15 minutes. The first 10 minutes were about how to keep your team safe and not having to advocate for Target. The last five was, ‘Move this to the back, take down the mannequins and remove the signage,’” the insider said, noting that bathing suits have replaced Pride merchandise in front-of-store displays despite Pride month not even starting until June 1.
“It’s all under the guise of trying to increase swim sales,” the insider said. “Everyone was like, ‘Thank God,’ because we’re all on the front lines dealing with it.”
