Why 1.6 Million People Refuse to Shop at Target Right Now

A strong economy means that this year’s Christmas shopping season is set to be bigger than ever, with the National Retail Federation estimating that U.S. consumers will spend over $1,000 each on average.

But 1.6 million of those shoppers still won’t be spending their hard-earned dollars at Target after signing on to American Family Association’s (AFA, afa.net) multi-year #BoycottTarget pledge.

Since 2016, AFA has warned families about the dangers created by Target’s ill-advised, open-door restroom and fitting room policy, which puts women and children in harm’s way, especially during the holidays when stores are crowded and people are laser-focused on shopping.

One of many examples occurred just this summer at a Pittsburgh-area Target store, where a man lurking near fitting rooms took photos of a 13-year-old girl while she was trying on clothes. The girl saw the camera flash in the mirror and notified her mother.

“The man got away, which means Target’s dangerous policy will allow him to return to repeat his crime on another day,” said AFA President Tim Wildmon. “AFA will continue to sound the alarm that Target’s policy of allowing men to enter women’s dressing areas and restrooms puts women and underage girls in danger.”

Women who shop at this particular Target store told WPXI that voyeurs sneaking pictures wasn’t something they worried about—until now. One customer said, “It’s like you go into the store, and you’re just shopping for clothes … you just assume that it’s safe.”

Especially during this Christmas shopping season, AFA is encouraging concerned Americans to take action in several ways:

1. Read and respond to the most recent AFA Action Alert on Target’s voyeurism problem.
2. Call Target headquarters at 612-304-6073 (option 2) and personally let executives know you are boycotting their stores.
3. Forward this information to friends and family. Invite them to sign the #BoycottTarget pledge at afa.net/target. More than 1.5 million have already signed the pledge.
4. Voice concerns on Target’s Facebook page.

“As AFA has stated many times,” Wildmon added, “our worries do not stem from fear of the transgender community, rather from both the real and potential threat that predators and voyeurs would take advantage of the Target restroom policy to harm women and children—and there are plenty of incidents to show that they have.”

View the media page for AFA here. For more information on American Family Association, visit afa.net or follow AFA on Facebook or on Twitter @AmericanFamAssc. {eoa}