The other day, US retail giant Target demonstrated that bigots can successfully bully them. The company announced that many items from their Pride Collection would be removed from their stores and website, in response to threats and tantrums thrown by homophobic and transphobic bigots.
What sort of message does this send to members of the LGBTIQA community, especially young people, who so often feel they have nowhere to turn? This is horrific. I fully understand the need to protect staff from violence (I’ve worked in that sort of retail, and I’ve had my share of petulant customers), but to cave in so completely to such behaviour is not only a slap in the face of the LGBTIQA community, it is a demonstration that bullying and threats work, which is a terrible message. This will embolden bigots. The next step? Overt, aggressive racism and/or misogyny. Angry displays of Islamophobia. Anything that these people dislike or disapprove of will be shouted out. It’s not without irony that the religious right in particular moans of cancel culture, yet will be silent on this matter.
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