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Target Rebuffs HRC Demand To “Make Things Right” After Emmer Donation

08/16/10-by Bridgette P. LaVictoire
The Human Rights Campaign has failed to reach an agreement with Target to “make things right” after two weeks of good-faith discussions. Basically, Target Corporation will not take any actions to even out or correct the mistake that it made in donating $150,000 to a PAC supporting anti-LGBT Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer. The candidate is not only anti-marriage equality, but closely associated with a Christian rock band that has advocated death and violence towards lesbians and gays.

The HRC will now devote $150,000 to helping elect a pro-marriage quality governor and legislature in Minnesota raising questions about why they were not doing this prior to this fiasco of a donation by Target. So far, Best Buy, which also supported MN Forward, the PAC supporting Emmer, has not responded to the HRC’s offer.

As a result of the Citizens United, corporations are able to donate unlimited amounts of shareholder money to certain PAC’s; however, it is not necessarily a good thing as this has caused a major backlash.

Of course, Joe Solomnese, president of the HRC, stated:

“All fair-minded Americans will now rightly question Target’s commitment to equality. If their initial contribution was a slap in the face, their refusal to make it right is a punch in the gut and that’s not something that we will soon forget. However, with full marriage equality hanging in the balance in Minnesota, regardless of Target, it’s important that we as a community send a message that we will work tirelessly to elect pro-equality candidates.

“Target and Best Buy have – and no doubt will continue to have – model employment policies for LGBT people. We will continue to support those efforts. But before they can regain that exalted status among their consumers, they need to make things right in Minnesota. The nation’s LGBT community has shown these two companies enormous customer loyalty. Now it’s time for that faithfulness to be returned.”

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