Target ditches Pride for Patriotism

Since “Pride Month” kicked off on June 1st, Target shoppers have been surprised to find USA-themed collections instead of the usual LGBTQ-themed merchandise.

In 2023, Target came under fire for marketing transgender and Satanic merchandise to children. The summer collection included Pride onesies for infants, clothing with transgender slogans, female swimwear for males to help them tuck their genitalia, chest binders for girls, items promoting Satan, and children’s books such as “Bye Bye Binary” and “What Are Your Words?,” a book about gender pronouns.

Consumers responded with a mass boycott, causing Target to remove the offensive products from their shelves—although the mega-retailer still released a Pride collection in June 2024. The boycott persisted, and was credited with a 22% dive in Target’s stock in November, wiping out $15.7 billion of the corporation’s market value. The Riviera Beach Police Pension Fund (RBPPF), which had bought Target stock at an inflated price, sued Target in late January after suffering financial losses from the boycott. That month, Target announced it would scale back its DEI initiatives and programs, including one promoting products from Black-owned businesses.

This year, consumers are reporting an absence of rainbow-themed collections and are instead greeted with an array of products in red, white, and blue.

“Looks like Target learned their lesson from all the Pride merchandise last year,” a user posted on X on Monday. “Nothing but USA apparel getting ready for Independence Day.”

But while many Americans are celebrating the long-awaited change, Leftists have expressed disappointment.

“Target’s really taken this DEI thing to another level,” a shopper said in a video recorded in Target after noting that Pride merchandise had been replaced with patriotic-themed products. “I’d love to be really proud of this nation, but it’s hard to be proud of it under Donald Trump,” she explained. 

Corporations scale back support for Pride

Target’s desertion of gender orthodoxy comes as other corporations are backing away from Pride parade sponsorships this June.

Anheuser-Busch, the St. Louis owner of Budweiser, Corona, and other brews, has pulled out of a number of Pride sponsorships this year. Among them was its 30-year sponsorship of PrideFest in its hometown of St. Louis. In March, St. Louis Pride launched a grassroots campaign to raise $150,000 after Anheuser-Busch and “many [other] sponsors” reduced their contributions.

“[W]e are devastated this year that our hometown brewer, Anheuser-Busch, has declined to sponsor PrideFest after more than 30 years of partnership. At a time when many sponsors have already reduced their contributions, this decision is especially painful. We are saddened to lose such a historic supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community in St. Louis,” wrote St. Louis Pride’s organizers. “In addition to the loss of Anheuser-Busch, funding has been coming in well below expectations, and we are currently over $150,000 short of last year’s total.”

Corporate giants Comcast, Deloitte, and Booz Allen Hamilton all withdrew their sponsorships of this year’s global WorldPride celebration, organized by Washington, D.C.-based Capital Pride Alliance. Ryan Bos, executive director for Capital Pride Alliance, said the pullbacks are “hurtful.”

“The sad thing is corporations have long been the first to step into our corner,” Bos told CNBC. “The fact that some are questioning their commitment now during this uncertain time is very disheartening, hurtful and frustrating for many.”

Seattle

Seattle Pride is expecting just $400,000 in corporate sponsorships this year, a $350,000 deficit. While Seattle Pride Executive Director Patti Hearn says this year’s Pride parade will still take place, the group will need to make serious changes if it continues to bleed corporate donations.

Minnesota

Minnesota has already had to make changes. Twin Cities Pride, whose budget relies heavily on corporate sponsorships, has cut a stage performance from this month’s parade and will have to reduce its year-long programming after losing sponsors.

Denver

Although Denver Pride’s corporate sponsors are returning this year, they have cut their donations by about 62% on average, resulting in a deficit of roughly $230,000.

San Francisco

San Francisco Pride has a gaping $300,000 hole in its 2025 Pride Parade budget after corporate donors—including Anheuser-Busch, Comcast, La Crema, Nissan, and Diageo—pulled out. Over 70% of SF Pride’s $3.2 million budget is meant to come from corporate sponsors.

“I just interpreted that companies are making decisions that at this time it’s not good to be sponsoring Pride,” San Francisco Pride Executive Director Suzanne Ford told SFGATE. “I think in this political environment that they thought that was a risky decision. But that’s just me reading the tea leaves. I think for a long-term sponsor not to sponsor us, they are responding to what we are.”

New York City

Forbes reported that NYC Pride—which organizes the largest parade in the country—says some corporations are cutting back on their support while others are still considering whether to do so. NYC Pride Media Director Chris Piedmont did not name specific companies but blamed the cuts on the “volatile political environment.”

Houston

Pride Houston has reportedly lost $100,000 in sponsorships after some companies slashed their donations by as much as 75%. While not naming any companies, the board of directors said the cuts have “impacted certain areas of programming.”

“The current political and economic climate has had a significant impact on sponsorship levels from corporations across a variety of sectors,” said the board.

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