Target was one of the most outspoken supporters of DEI. It's changed its tune

CNN

05-02-2025

Target was one of corporate America's most forceful supporters of diversity and inclusion initiatives and vowed to support Black Americans in the aftermath of George Floyd's murder by police in Target's home city of Minneapolis in 2020. But less than five years later, Target has dialed back its high-profile DEI program.
In 2020, Target CEO Brian Cornell said Floyd's murder, which took place just 10 minutes from Target's headquarters, had a personal impact on him and Target employees, and Cornell vowed to reopen one of Target's stores damaged in protests against police violence.
George Floyd 'could have been one of my Target team members,' Cornell later said.
Months after the murder, Target pledged to increase its Black workforce by 20% throughout the company over three years and take other steps to 'advance racial equity,' including establishing an executive Racial Equity Action and Change committee to 'focus specifically on how we can drive lasting impact' for Black employees and customers.
The following year, Target pledged to spend more than $2 billion with Black-owned businesses by the end of 2025, including adding more products from 500 Black-owned vendors to stores, and pledging $100 million to support Black-led nonprofits and provide scholarships to students attending HBCUs.
Target was honored for its 'outstanding commitment to achieving Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)' in 2022 by the Executive Leadership Council, a prominent organization of global Black CEOs. Cornell accepted the award for Target at a star-studded gala.
Cornell defended Target's 'bold commitments' to DEI in 2023, saying they were helping Target's business.
'That focus on diversity and inclusion and equity has fueled much of our growth,' he said. 'The things we've done from a DE&I standpoint — it's adding value, it's helping us drive sales, it's building greater engagement with both our teams and our guests. And those are just the right things for our business today.'
But Target has now shifted its message. The company is the poster child for corporate America's change on DEI and direct public commitments to advance progress for Black Americans and racial minorities. Because Target was so vocal in its diversity efforts in recent years, the company's shift has alienated some loyal customers and suppliers.
Target recently announced it was ending its pledge to increase its Black workforce by 20% and its executive racial equity committee. Target said it was 'further evaluating' corporate partnerships and changing its 'supplier diversity' team, focused on bringing in Black-owned and diverse suppliers, to a 'supplier engagement' team working more broadly on including small businesses without specific regard to race. Target will also stop participating in external diversity-focused surveys, including one from the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ advocacy group.
A spokesperson for Target said Target was on track to meet its prior workforce diversity goals and financial commitments to Black suppliers.
Gone from Target's announcement were prior vows to directly advance equality for Black people or any representation goals or financial targets, instead replaced by a new company strategy called 'Belonging at the Bullseye.' The spokesperson said Target first introduced this concept to employees last year.
'We remain focused on driving our business by creating a sense of belonging for our team, guests and communities through a commitment to inclusion,' Target said. 'Belonging for all is an essential part of our team and culture, helping fuel consumer relevance and business results.'
Target is altering its approach in response to political, legal and social changes. They include opposition from right-wing activists, lawsuits from conservative legal groups, demand from conservative-leaning customers and other factors.
President Donald Trump last month also placed employees in any federal diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility offices on leave, and the Trump administration plans to take further aim at diversity programs. It's not yet clear how this will impact Target and other large companies.
Target stressed in its statement the need for 'staying in step with the evolving external landscape,' a hint at how the tide has shifted since its pledges in 2020.
Target is joining a growing list of companies changing or ending their DEI programs, such as Amazon, Meta, Walmart, McDonald's and others.
Target's change is symbolic of a broader pivot across corporate America.
In 2020 and 2021, companies raced to add DEI roles and chief diversity officers, made lofty commitments to racial justice and invested in programs and organizations to support Blacks and other racial minorities. In 2020, companies spent an estimated $7.5 billion on DEI-related efforts, such as employee resource groups, according to a McKinsey study.
But opposition to companies' efforts began to emerge on the right.
Bud Light was a potent warning on the risks of LGBTQ-driven marketing campaigns. In 2023, Bud Light's parent company A-B InBev lost as much as $1.4 billion in sales because of backlash to Bud Light's brief partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Target that year also became embroiled in the political culture wars over gender and sexual orientation.
Target faced a pressure campaign from some prominent right-wing activists, Republican political leaders and conservative media outlets over its Pride Month merchandise.
Opponents focused their attention on a women's swimsuit sold at Target that was described as 'tuck friendly' for its ability to conceal male genitalia. Misinformation spread on social media that it was marketed to children, which it was not.
Republican attorneys general in several states wrote to Target warning that merchandise in its Pride Month collection could violate their states' child protection laws.
The campaign became hostile, with violent threats levied against Target employees and instances of damaged products and displays in stores. Target opted to remove certain items that caused the most 'volatile' reaction from opponents, which Target said was done to protect its workers' safety.
Target's response frustrated some supporters of gay and transgender rights, who said the company caved to bigoted pressure.
Target's quarterly sales fell for the first time in six years following Pride Month in 2023. 'The strong reaction to this year's Pride assortment' impacted sales, said Christina Hennington, Target's chief growth officer.
Ryan Wilson, an Atlanta business leader and co-founder of The Gathering Spot, a members-only club for young professionals, said that Target and other companies had violated core 'values' they espoused.
He believes Target will lose support from minority customers.
Still, there is a divide among some Black leaders and Black Target suppliers about how hard to punish Target.
Nina Turner, a progressive political leader and founder of We Are Somebody, a worker advocacy group, called for a Target boycott.
'There's power in our purchase,' she told CNN. 'We should not spend a dime at Target stores.' 'It's not lost on me that Target is headquartered where the George Floyd uprising happened,' she said. 'How quickly they forget and reverse course.'
But others appear unsure of an immediate boycott. On Wednesday, the NAACP released a statement saying it is talking to Target about its diversity plans. Rev. Al Sharpton's group, the National Action Network, will conduct a 90-day review of companies before potential decisions on a boycott.
Melissa Butler, founder of the startup beauty brand Lip Bar, said a boycott could hurt Black-owned brands like hers, but she understood customers' frustration with Target.
'A lot of my customers shop us at Target and they were asking, 'what's going on, what does this mean for The Lip Bar?'' she told CNN.
'In our eight years in Target, the relationship has been great and we have grown a lot,' she said. 'Target has historically been a brand champion for small businesses, women owned businesses, Black owned businesses…It feels like wait, what's happening? Even Target is turning their back?'
Just because Target is scaling back their DEI commitments doesn't mean it is going to be ending relationships with businesses owned by people of color, Butler said.
A Target spokesperson said that the company was proud of its wide-ranging assortment and partnerships, including Black-owned and minority-owned products. Target will 'continue to aim to create joyful experiences through an assortment of products and services that help all guests feel seen and celebrated.'
Target's recent changes to its diversity and inclusion programs have also angered some longtime LGBTQ supporters.
Twin Cities Pride, an LGBTQ advocacy group that hosts Minnesota's second largest Pride festival, said it was 'deeply disappointed' in Target's changes and dropped Target as a sponsor of this year's Pride festival after 18 years.
Twin Cities Pride said the change would mean losing $50,000 in funding and called on supporters to help fill the funding gap. The group raised $80,000 from 1,500 people in three days. 'Twin Cities Pride made the bold decision to part ways with Target as a sponsor, standing firm in our commitment to LGBTQ+ inclusion and equity,' the organization said.