Posted on 08/16/2010 4:23:03 PM PDT by markomalley
Target Corp. said Monday it won't give money to gay-friendly causes to quiet the uproar over a $150,000 donation that helped support a Minnesota governor candidate who opposes gay marriage.
The discount retailing giant said it was "best to wait" given the controversy stirred by its donation, which prompted Facebook calls for a boycott and scattered protests outside stores. An anti-boycott site also popped up on Facebook from conservatives supporting Target.
"We believe that it is impossible to avoid turning any further actions into a political issue and will use the benefit of time to make thoughtful, careful decisions on how best to move forward," the company said in a statement.
In response, the Human Rights Campaign, a national gay rights group, said it will contribute $150,000 of its own money to political candidates in Minnesota who support gay marriage, including Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mark Dayton.
Target has been under pressure for three weeks for contributing $150,000 to MN Forward, a group that has run ads supporting Republican Tom Emmer.
Fred Sainz, an HRC spokesman, said Target and his group had reached two tentative agreements over the last couple weeks for the discount retail giant to give money to various gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender causes in Minnesota.
"Then when we were ready to pull the trigger, literally at the 11th hour on two occasions, they pulled back and said they were not ready to proceed," Sainz said. "They said no deal. They said it was over."
Minneapolis-based Target has cultivated a good relationship with the gay community and its image as an inclusive employer. The company has been a sponsor of the annual Twin Cities Gay Pride Festival.
(Excerpt) Read more at newsok.com ...
I don’t think even the politically correct appreciate being the “target” of a shakedown.
The better response to them would have been “Bite Me”
I would have gone out of my way to buy a TV there or something
We used to call this "looking a gift horse in the mouth".
Never feed a crocodile—especially a gay one.
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