Target CEO meets with Al Sharpton as activist considers calling for boycott over DEI rollback

Target CEO Brian Cornell met with left-wing activist Al Sharpton in order to talk about the retail company’s recent decision to roll back its DEI programs as Sharpton has been weighing whether to call for a boycott against the company. 

CNBC reports that Target requested the meeting with Sharpton after some activist groups have said that they will not be shopping at Target anymore because of the cuts to the DEI programs.

Sharpton has not called for people to boycott Target but has supported some groups in their efforts to convince shoppers not to go to the retail chain.

“You can’t have an election come and all of a sudden, change your old positions,” Sharpton told reporters before the meeting. “If an election determines your commitment to fairness, then fine, you have a right to withdraw from us, but then we have a right to withdraw from you.”

Sharpton said that he would consider calling for a boycott if Target does not pledge to work with black-owned businesses and affirm its commitment to the black community.

“I said, ‘If [Cornell] wants to have a candid meeting, we’ll meet,’” Sharpton said of the phone call Target made to his office. “I want to first hear what he has to say.”

He later called the meeting “constructive and candid.”

“I am going to inform our allies, including Rev. Dr. Jamal Bryant, of our discussion, what my feelings are, and we will go from there,” he added.

Target has been long known for being more friendly to left-wing causes. The company was one of the most outspoken supporters of DEI in the years following the death of George Floyd and sold an array of different products related to LGBTQ individuals.

A line was crossed, however, in 2023 when the store featured “tuck-friendly” swimwear for kids, the New York Post reported at the time. Backlash ensued, and the store scaled back its pride clothing section the next year before Pride Month.

Leading up to the election of President Donald Trump, several large companies said they would be cutting back on their DEI programs or getting rid of them altogether, including at Amazon, Walmart, and others. Target rolled back its DEI programs a few days after Trump took control of the White House in late January.