In certain southern cities, Pride flags and merchandise have been removed from businesses.
Premiere on Fox The company ordered several of its southern outlets to remove LGBTQ Pride displays from their front windows due to customer “outrage” and the potential for a “Bud Light situation.”
Massive displays celebrating June Pride month are a yearly tradition at many Target stores around the country, and this year’s selection includes anything from “tuck-friendly” swimming suits for transgender people to mugs that read “gender fluid.” However, the retail giant has come under fire from conservatives who are unhappy with the displays, especially those involving children’s products.
To prevent the kind of outrage that Bud Light has received in recent weeks after utilizing a transgender influencer in a commercial effort, an insider at Target told Fox News Digital that several locations, particularly in rural areas of the South, had relocated Pride sections.
According to an insider, certain managers and district senior directors received “emergency” calls on Friday instructing them to immediately reduce the Pride areas of the store.
We were given only 36 hours to pack up the entire Pride area and relocate it to a space only a third as big. The Target employee stressed the importance of not using any large signs or mannequins anywhere in the store, from the entrance to the rear.
“We call our consumers ‘guests,’ and they’re outraged about it. The Target employee went on to say that this year’s increase “is just exponentially more than any other year.” To paraphrase one insider, “I think given the current situation with Bud Light, the company is terrified of a Bud Light situation.”
An employee with almost two decades of experience at Target said the company rarely makes snap choices. They noted that members of the Target Asset Protect and Corporate Security teams were present at Friday’s conference and that the first ten minutes were spent discussing “how to deal with team member safety” in light of the level of backlash the Pride product has caused.
The call only lasted 15 minutes, which is ridiculously fast. The first ten minutes focused on team safety and how to avoid having to defend Target. “The last five were, ‘Move this to the back, take down the mannequins, and remove the signage,'” the insider claimed, noting that bathing suits have replaced Pride products in front-of-store displays even though Pride month doesn’t begin until June 1.
The source explained that their actions were motivated by a desire to boost sales of swimming apparel. We’re the ones on the front lines dealing with everything, so everyone was like, “Thank God.”
When reached for comment, Target did not immediately respond.
Fox News Digital has verified that Pride sections will be relocated to some Targets in rural areas of South Carolina, Arkansas, and Georgia. Many regular workers didn’t even find out that the Pride areas were being relocated until they saw it for themselves.
Target’s online store and other stores continue to prominently feature Pride products.
The female-cut swimwear sold at Target for the Pride event can be used to “tuck” a man’s privates. There are also labels on certain products that read, “Thoughtfully fit on multiple body types and gender expressions.”
Baby onesie and romper sets, adult tees bearing phrases like “Super Queer,” party ware, housewares, novels, and even a saucer planter that reads “Grow at Your Own Pace” are just some of the Pride products available.
More than a month after the controversy surrounding Bud Light’s collaboration with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney first surfaced, sales have yet to recover. The problem started when Mulvaney made public the fact that the brewery had delivered the influencer packs of Bud Light with her visage to mark the completion of one year of “girlhood.” Mulvaney is just one of many influential people on social media that Bud Light has paid to advertise their beer.
On Instagram, Mulvaney called the tins her “most prized possession” and used the hashtag “#budlightpartner.” Mulvaney was then shown in a video for the campaign soaking in a tub while he drank Bud Light. Some customers believed that cans with Mulvaney’s image were actually for sale.
Recently, Bud Light learned a hard lesson about becoming involved in cultural debates. Conservative journalist and author Bethany Mandel tweeted that Target’s partnership with Dylan Mulvaney “is nothing compared to what Target is doing.”