Remember how Target started selling "tuck-friendly" clothes for kids and then its stock crashed?
We remember 👇
If Target thought it could sweep that under the rug, it had a rude awakening this week as Florida's new Attorney General, James Uthmeier, dropped a federal lawsuit, accusing the retail giant of misleading investors by pushing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
For years, Target was a proud champion of radical social activism, pushing LGBTQ+ merchandise and leftist policies at the expense of its bottom line. But in 2023, the company took things to a new level, rolling out Pride-themed products that sparked backlash from everyday consumers — many of whom don't particularly want to be force-fed progressive ideology while shopping for toilet paper.
Remember this?
Or this?
Or this?
Remember how they invited an actual satanist to design merch?
Confrontations in stores, plummeting sales, and public outrage ensued. You can see where the store's stock fell off a cliff:
Fast-forward to today, and Target is finally scrambling to scale back the very policies that got it into this mess (but only after Trump won).
In a lawsuit filed in Fort Myers, Uthmeier argues that Target violated the Securities Exchange Act by failing to disclose the obvious risks of pushing DEI and Pride initiatives — risks that any rational executive should have seen coming.
In other words, instead of focusing on making money, Target played political activist, and now its investors are paying the price.
From Uthmeier:
Corporations that push radical leftist ideology at the expense of financial returns jeopardize the retirement security of Florida's first responders and teachers. My office will stridently pursue corporate reform so that companies get back to the business of doing business — not offensive political theatre.
This isn't even just about Target. It's about the growing trend of corporations who chose woke signaling over profitability, pushed ESG nonsense over shareholder value, and are now acting surprised that consumers dared to fight back.
Bottom line? If companies like Target want to survive, they might want to reconsider alienating half the country in the name of "inclusivity."
Because as Florida just proved, woke has consequences.
Follow Ian on Substack or X (@ighaworth).
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