Keeping Target's and Best Buy's Feet to the Fire Over Anti-Gay Donations

If there's anyone breathing a sigh of relief at the end of this week, it might be oil giant BP. That's because for the first time in months, another corporation might have had a worse week, at least when it comes to public relations and corporate accountability. That corporation would be Target, one of America's beloved retail brands. Known for its lovable puppy mascot, cafes with Icees, low prices and hipster marketing, Target dropped a lead balloon on Americans this week by being caught giving $150,000 to a political candidate in Minnesota, Tom Emmer, who thinks gay people are immoral, and who wants to keep them from raising children or getting married.

Target's handling of the situation is worthy of a love song by Tony Hayward. When activists first started criticizing Target for the donation, the company responded via a spokesperson by saying that it was their right to engage in the political process. As outrage over Target's funding of one of the most anti-gay politicians in the country continued to grow, Target's CEO was forced to issue a statement, that amounted to a 'Look, we fund your pride festivals and we treat our gay employees with dignity. Doesn't that give us permission to try and elect candidates that will take away your civil rights?' sentiment. Folks weren't amused, or pacified.

And now the proverbial defecation is really hitting the fan. A coalition of groups, including MoveOn, the Human Rights Campaign, and the Alliance for a Better Minnesota (to name a few) are all hitting Target hard. They, along with more than 21,000 Change.org members and countless others who have joined Facebook pages in outrage over Target's anti-gay donation, are pushing Target (and Best Buy, which also dropped $100,000 in support of Tom Emmer) to make things right with their consumers. Will these companies listen?

Send an email now to Target and Best Buy, urging them to stop funding a politics that breeds homophobia, transphobia and bigotry. Consider it an open letter to corporate America: we're watching where you're donating, and we'll hold you accountable for supporting a politics that flies in the face of equality.

MoveOn nailed this issue in an email that went out to their Minnesota members earlier today, which urges folks to call Target (612-304-6073, and then press 1) to express their outrage that the company would engage in this type of politics. They note that, yes, part of the outrage over these donations is because these sizable contributions are supporting a candidate, Tom Emmer, who has rather extreme views when it comes to homosexuality. But this is also about corporations trying to buy elected officials, and that's never appropriate.

"Target's CEO wrote an email to company employees where he didn't apologize for the contribution. He said it was made for 'business objectives such as job creation and economic growth.' Clearly, Target hasn't gotten the message: Whatever the reason, trying to buy an election is unacceptable," MoveOn writes. "Especially when the candidate you're supporting is a right-winger who actively threatens many of Target's customers' values!"

If this were a Church, I'd stand up and clap my hands about now, and ask God to smite the Citizens United decision, reached by the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year, which gives corporations carte blanche to try and buy election results that fit their bottom line. That's really what lies at the heart of this all. Target and Best Buy think Tom Emmer is better for their profit margin, so they're supporting him with buckets of money even though Emmer's political positions on many social issues are untenable to the vast majority of Best Buy and Target customers. Offensive.

The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) notes that for many in the LGBT community, there's a particular sense of betrayal felt with these two companies, who have up until now had stellar records on promoting diversity, inclusion and equality. They call on both corporations to make things right with the LGBT community, or else run the risk of permanently damaging their brand identity.

“It’s a huge slap in the face to LGBT people and for that matter to all fair-minded Americans,” said Joe Solmonese, HRC president. “Two of our most trusted brands have contributed shareholder money that could help elect a candidate that wants nothing but the worst for us. Both companies talk about this contribution as a business decision. I would offer that it’s a really bad business decision. Both companies have now earned the bad will of LGBT people and fair-minded Americans. They need to make it right.”

Agreed, and you have to wonder if Target executives are pacing around their Minneapolis headquarters thinking, "What did we just get ourselves into?" Not only that, but now awesome journalists like Patrick Connors at SFweekly are questioning whether some communities, like San Francisco, should balk at welcoming Target stores into their locale, given that the corporation is funding anti-gay politicians.

How much longer will Target (and Best Buy) let this drag on before trying to make things right, and reaffirm their commitment to equality? It's been one solid week of disastrous public relations for both companies, particularly for Target. How many more weeks of bad PR would they like?

Photo credit: robholland