Target’s CEO Slams ‘Gut-Wrenching’ Threats Over LGBTQ-Themed Goods

  • Workers in stores, service centers suffered abusive treatment
  • Critics say the retailer is caving as culture war escalates
Brian CornellPhotographer: Sarah Blesener/Bloomberg

Target Corp.’s top executive hammered the aggressive behavior that some customers directed toward employees because of the retailer’s collection of LGBTQ-themed merchandise.

The company removed some items from its collection for Pride Month in June, which honors lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, saying a rash of threats made workers feel unsafe. That move followed “many difficult days of deliberation and decision-making,” Chief Executive Officer Brian Cornell said in an internal memo.