Ga. pastor continues Target boycott, invites company CEO to forum
ATLANTA, Ga. - What started as a 40-day “fast” against Target has become a full-on boycott, the pastor of a popular metro Atlanta church announced.
During his Easter Sunday address, Dr. Jamal Bryant with the Stonecrest-based New Birth Missionary Baptist Church called on his congregation to stay out of Target as negotiations with the company continue.
Target foot traffic has declined for 10 consecutive weeks since rolling back DEI
Dozens of Fortune 500 companies have recently backtracked on diversity, equity and inclusion programs, but none have seen as much backlash as Target.
He added that he invited Target CEO Brian Cornell to a Tuesday public forum at the church, although he doesn’t know if he will attend.
“Not since the Montgomery Bus Boycott has Black America come together in such a unified vision, a unified focus, and a unified front,” Bryant said. “There is power in unity, and we know the strength of Black economics.”
In February, the church ed a grassroots movement boycotting Target, which dropped its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies in January under pressure from the Trump istration.
Since then, about 200,000 people have signed up to participate in the Target fast, Bryant said. In the past 10 weeks, foot traffic has declined at the stores, according to data from the analytics firm Placer.ai. The company’s stock has also gone down, costing the company billions.
According to Bryant, Target has agreed to invest $2 billion in Black businesses by July 31. However, the movement has several other requests, including putting $250 million into Black banks and partnering with six HBCU business programs.
“Ladies or gentlemen, whether you realize it or not, we are now in the new civil rights movement, and New Birth, you are in the epicenter of what is getting ready to take place,” Bryant said.
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