US: Bomb Threats Against Target Stores Ruled Hoax

Improve the News Foundation -

Facts

  • Bomb threats made against five Target stores in Ohio and Pennsylvania have turned out to be a hoax, the Police and the FBI confirmed over the weekend.1
  • On Friday, a man reportedly emailed news stations claiming he had planted bombs in several Target stores because of their decision to pull Pride Month merchandise, thereby "turning their back on the LGBT community."2
  • It was initially speculated that the threats had come from LGBT opponents boycotting Target for supporting Pride Month. However, authorities later discovered that they were made by an angry LGBT community supporter in response to the conservative backlash.3
  • In a public statement, Target announced that its stores are now open and operating regular hours. "Law enforcement investigated these claims and determined our stores are safe," the company said.4
  • Target's decision to remove or relocate their LGBT collection celebrating Pride Month came after customers in some Target stores destroyed LGBT Pride displays and confronted employees over the merchandise.4
  • The market valuation of Target dropped $10B in 10 days this month, as a result of backlash against the retailer over its Pride-themed clothing line for children.5

Sources: 1WFMJ, 2Cleveland19, 3TMZ, 4USA Today, and 5New York Post.

Narratives

  • Left narrative, as provided by Cleveland19. Pride Month is an opportunity for the LGBT+ community to gather together and connect, which is why the opposition to Target's Pride-themed merchandise is so disheartening. Target must stand firm in the face of anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and discrimination, and resist caving in to hate.
  • Right narrative, as provided by Daily Mail. Target's Pride merchandise is inappropriately enforcing LGBT ideology onto children. It is not acceptable that vulnerable minors are exposed to products like tucking swimsuits and political slogans like: "Trans people will always exist." Target deserves to be boycotted for its unsuitable and politically biased promotion.
  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by USA Today. While companies like Target may appear to be supporting LGBT+ rights through this kind of merchandising, this commodification of pride should be considered more critically as an act of Rainbow Capitalism. Corporate allyship must strike a tricky balance between principles of profit and supporting marginalized groups — in this case, Target's opportunistic branding has prompted backlash against the queer community without either strengthening representation or supporting social progress.

Predictions