By Sarah Nassauer
A shopper boycott against Target that has dented sales could be cooling.
A group of activists who last year encouraged shoppers to boycott Target after it backed away from some of its diversity, equity and inclusion policies said that Target has privately acknowledged a breakdown in trust with the Black community and that their official work on the boycott will end.
Target executives have reinforced their support of supplier diversity and historically Black colleges and universities in a series of meetings with activists, and acknowledged they eroded trust with some shoppers and employees, some of those leading the boycott said in a press conference Wednesday.
There is more to do, but "we are claiming victory," said Jamal Harrison Bryant, a pastor in a church outside of Atlanta that has helped lead the boycott. "This fight, for us, has now reached its conclusion."
It isn't clear how many of the people who stopped shopping at Target after the DEI changes will return as customers. On a livestream of the press conference Wednesday, some commenters said they won't go back. And Nina Turner, another of the activists who led the boycott, said she wasn't going to start shopping there again unless the company publicly apologizes.
"Just as they quit us publicly, they need to reaffirm their love for us publicly," Turner said. "There is a pain there."
Target has reported 13 consecutive quarters of weak or falling quarterly sales, and shares have languished over much of the past two years. Executives acknowledged that shopper anger over its DEI policy shifts played a role in the poor results last year.
In recent years, the Minneapolis, Minn.-based retailer has increasingly found itself in cultural crosshairs in a way that has dented sales. Consumer boycotts related to cultural or political beliefs have hurt other companies and brands such as Bud Light, but Target has been particularly prone.
That is in part because Target was previously among the most outspoken corporate supporters of Black and LGBTQ rights. Last January the company said it would end some of its workforce and supplier diversity programs, after paring back its LGTBTQ-themed merchandise related to Pride month in 2023. At the same time, it turned off some conservative shoppers with the 2023 collection, offending shoppers on both sides of the political spectrum.
Soon after Target shared its DEI changes last January, church pastors, a former state senator in Ohio, a Minneapolis civil-rights lawyer and other supporters of corporate diversity policies called for a boycott, and word spread on social media.
Bryant, the pastor, and other leaders who were part of the call for a boycott met with Target's former chief executive Brian Cornell last year. Then, earlier this year Target's new CEO Michael Fiddelke and other executives also met with some of those leaders, this time acknowledging that the DEI announcement broke down trust with many in the Black community, as well as its own employees, said Tamika Mallory, an activist who helped lead the boycott, during the press conference Wednesday.
In those meetings, Target executives highlighted the company's ongoing investments in Black-owned businesses and historically Black colleges and universities, said a Target spokesman.
"Target is more committed than ever to creating growth and opportunity for all. We're pleased to be moving forward, and we will continue showing up as trusted neighbors," said a Target spokesman Wednesday.
Earlier this year, the retailer was again in the spotlight after a federal immigration crackdown brought immigration actions to its stores and parking lots. Federal officials detained two Target workers in the vestibule of a store and frequently gathered in store parking lots. Some activists called on Target to speak more forcefully against immigration actions in and around its stores, as well as against the crackdown in its home state. In late January, Target signed a joint letter with dozens of other Minnesota-based businesses calling on state, local and federal officials to de-escalate tensions over immigration, but didn't specifically call the federal actions wrong.
Earlier this month, Fiddelke outlined a plan to turn around Target's business. The company is investing billions to improve stores and the company's technology, and is working to offer more enticing products. Fiddelke also acknowledged in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that the company got some of its cultural actions and messaging wrong.
"There have been times over the last few years where we haven't been clear enough about who we are and if we're not clear enough, it can create confusion," Fiddelke said in the interview last week.
Write to Sarah Nassauer at Sarah.Nassauer@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 11, 2026 14:21 ET (18:21 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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