(PartiallyPolitics.com) – On Tuesday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) criticized Target’s chief executive for removing LGBTQ and Pride Month merchandise from the stores after many customers attacked the store because of the items.
In a tweet on Tuesday night Newsom wrote that CEO of Target Brian Cornell was “selling out the LGBTQ+ community” because of a few extremists. He further added that this is not just in a few of the Target stores in the South, but rather it was part of a “systematic attack” on the LGBTQ+ community. He proceeded to call for Americans to wake up adding that other communities would be next.
On Tuesday, Target announced that they would be adjusting the way that some of their stores were set up after they received backlash for the Pride Month merchandise which has been on sale since early May. Target has stated that these changes were because many members of their staff were feeling threatened at work. The company did not disclose specifically which items would be removed from the shelves but they did confirm that all of the Pride merchandise would be moved to the back of the stores in the South.
Recent FBI data has shown that there has been a 54 percent increase in the hate crimes reported against members of the LGBTQ community from 2020 to 2021. They also show that hate crimes against transgender and gender-nonconforming people had also increased in 2021 by 29 percent. Specifically, the debate about some gender-affirming health care especially relating to minors has increased in recent years, which has led to many states banning such health care from being provided.
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