A grassroots boycott campaign has sprung up against Target and Best Buy, because these companies donated $150,000 and $100,000, respectively, to Minnesota Forward, a political action committee supporting the election of Republican Tom Emmer for governor of Minnesota. Emmer is a far-right politician, strongly against gay-rights and same-sex marriage. Additionally, he supports Arizona ‘s SB 1070 anti-immigrant law.
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In response to consumer outrage at Target’s support for bigotry, Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel was quick to point out Target’s involvement in the Minnesota LGBT community as well as its history of supporting political candidates “on both sides of the aisle.” More telling, however, is PR spokesperson Lena Michaud’s statement that Target gives money to causes and groups “based strictly on issues that affect our retail and business objectives.”
In other words, it is all about profit. Target/Best Buy’s policy is to donate money to those candidates that they think will be most pro-capitalist: Target/Best Buy is trying to make as much money as possible with no regard as to how it affects people, from families trying to get by on the low wages they offer to their workers to the human rights impacted by the politicians they support with their corporate donations.
