Target has come under fire for their ‘tuck-friendly’ swimsuits which are part of their Pride collection. The suits contain extra material around the crotch area, a feature that has been questioned by some.
Boycotts Sparked Against Target Over Female Swimsuits With Extra Crotch Coverage: ‘Tuck-Friendly’ https://t.co/TQZ52nZ6MN
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Megyn Kelly, of the “The Megyn Kelly Show” podcast, spoke out against the swimsuits, calling out Target CEO Brian Cornell for his defense of the merchandise.
“Target decided it would be a great idea to partner with a company — as far as I could tell one of its main lines seems to be sort of a pro-Satan line of clothing…They decided to willingly partner with this clothing manufacturer to make Pride month gear that includes bathing suits that are quote ‘tuck-friendly’ that have extra material around the crotch, which no woman needs because we don’t have penises down south in Rio.”
Target’s CEO Brian Cornell told Fortune’s Leadership Next podcast, “When we think about purpose at Target, it’s really about helping all the families, and that ‘all’ word is really important. Most of America shops at Target, so we want to do the right thing to support families across the country.”
In addition to the swimsuits, Target’s Pride collection includes baby onesies with rainbow patterns, and t-shirts with slogans like “We belong everywhere across the trans flag, too queer for here, cure transphobia not trans people.”
The supplier of the Pride merchandise is Abprallen, which features a skeleton draped in rainbow colors, a “Trans Witches For Abortion” badge, and a “Satan respects pronouns” t-shirt on their website.
On Abprallen’s product page for the Satan shirt, they claim members of the LGBT+ community are “so often referred to as being a product of Satan or going against God’s will” and argue that the Church of Satan and The Satanic Temple are more tolerant of the gay community.
Although the t-shirts are not being sold by Target, some critics have pointed out the potential connection between Target and what they feel are blasphemous messages.
In a recent statement, Target clarified that they “did not create the t-shirts, nor do we condone their promotion…We remain committed to creating an inclusive experience for all our guests.”
Target’s CEO Brian Cornell further clarified, “What we’ve done is create an inclusive lineup of Pride merchandise that speaks to an array of guests and reflects our commitment to creating a welcoming environment for everyone. Absolutely no guest should leave our stores feeling unwelcome.”
The controversy surrounding Target’s ‘tuck-friendly’ swimsuits sheds light on consumer preferences and corporate responsibility in the retail industry. Whether the move to include the swimsuits in Target’s Pride collection was a good business decision or not, remains to be seen.