Walmart’s masterful move that saved the company from a lawsuit, but Target ignored it
Target is facing another lawsuit, this time from brought by Florida, over a marketing decision that created intense backlash tanking its stock price.
Two years ago, Target found itself in the middle of a viral anti-LGBTQ campaign when it stocked its shelves with Pride merchandise in the run-up to Pride month. The Minneapolis-based retailer was the target of a boycott as well as Bud Light, the latter over an ad campaign featuring trans TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney, which both saw their sales plummet.
Likewise, it helped drive down the share price of Target and Anheuser Busch InBev, Bud Light’s parent company, wiping billions off their market value. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis at the time threatened to sue Anheuser Busch InBev for the collateral damage that was done to the state’s pension fund but took no action in the end. Target, on the other hand, wasn’t so lucky.
Last week, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a class-action lawsuit against the Target Corporation on behalf of the Florida State Board of Administration, which oversees public pension funds. “Corporations that push radical leftist ideology at the expense of financial returns jeopardize the retirement security of Florida’s first responders and teachers,” said Uthmeier in a press release. “My office will stridently pursue corporate reform so that companies get back to the business of doing business—not offensive political theatre.”
The state was joined in their class-action lawsuit by America First Legal which had previously filed a lawsuit in August 2023. A federal judge in December last year denied Target’s motion to dismiss the case, ruling that the company may have violated federal securities laws.
Today, we filed a lawsuit against Target on behalf of the Florida State Board of Administration.
— James Uthmeier (@JamesUthmeierFL) February 20, 2025
Target’s efforts to sexualize children caused its stock price to plummet, harming Florida’s retirement fund and putting the retirements of our teachers and first responders at risk: pic.twitter.com/UcZq3cSC3p
Walmart escaped anti-LGBTQ backlash
Target, in response to “volatile circumstances” including confrontations between customers and staff, pulled some of its Pride-related merchandise in 2023 and breaking with tradition only stocked it in select stores the following year. However, at Walmart it was a much different story. The Bentonville-based retailer, while having Pride month merchandise stocked in stores, avoided the wrath of the anti-LGBTQ campaign.
Not even the experience of their competitor made the retail giant change its stance and Walmart actively promoted its 2024 collection writing on an Instagram post “Not just a slogan. #PrideAlways is a reminder to lead with love.”
“I think we have merchandise that we sell all year that supports different groups,” said Latriece Watkins, Walmart’s chief merchandising officer when asked about the Target controversy. “I’d say in this particular case, we haven’t changed anything in our assortment.”
However, both Walmart and Target, along with several other major companies, rolled back their DEI programs in the wake of Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election. Those moves, while celebrated by conservatives, have drawn rebuke and activists have called for a boycott of Target.
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