TPM: Human Rights Campaign Slams Target And Best Buy For Supporting Anti-Gay Tom Emmer

[geardaddy]

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/08/hrc-slams-target-and-best-buy-for-supporting-anti-gay-tom-emmer.php

The political fallout from the post-Citizens United spending by Target and other Minnesota companies on the state's gubernatorial race continues, with gay-rights activists attacking business interests for supporting the anti-gay Republican Tom Emmer.

[geardaddy]

1. Kick a doodle.

[qb]

2. Very powerful message. K&R

[geardaddy]

3. Thanks qb.

[qb]

4. TPM's link to the ad didn't work for me... Here's the text of the letter (HRC also has a petition)

www.hrc.org

TARGET AND BEST BUY
MAKE IT RIGHT!

An Open Letter to Target and Best Buy

When lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender consumers — not to mention our millions of supportive friends and family members — used to think about Target and Best Buy, we saw two shining examples of corporations that respected the equality and dignity of every American. As nationwide retailers, both of your brands gave other corporations a standard to which they could aspire. In fact, your consistent ratings of 100 percent on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index were a solid signal of your commitment to a diverse workforce. As a community, we are grateful for that commitment and we fully expect it will continue.

Now, Americans are questioning their loyalty to your brands with word of significant contributions to the political action committee MN Forward that hopes to install one of the most strident opponents of equality in the Minnesota Governor’s mansion. With these contributions, you have severely damaged those carefully cultivated reputations and violated the spirit of the gold standards bestowed on you. In fact, the long-term effects on families that shop at Target and Best Buy throughout Minnesota and the U.S. will be devastating.

At this critical time in Minnesotans’ quest for equality, MN Forward and the candidates they are supporting would turn Minnesota backward, away from the promise of equal opportunity and fairness that we hold dear. No matter your motivations in making these donations, they didn’t occur in a vacuum. Same-sex couples in your home state are denied the equality given to other couples in marriage and many state leaders are poised to right that inequity very soon. $250,000 in contributions to those who would stand in the way is a punch in the gut to those of us who want to see all families treated fairly. What may have sounded like a “good business decision” in the board room turns out to be a horribly short-sighted business decision when millions of consumers lose respect for your companies.

With the Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United, the landscape for political contributions has changed in ways that no one fully appreciates yet. Your foray into this uncharted water has proved choppy and should serve as a warning to other corporations mindful of the perceptions of LGBT and allied consumers.

It’s time to make things right. The very least you can do to begin rebuilding your image among fair-minded consumers is to make equivalent donations to groups that support candidates who will put all Minnesota families first and fulfill the promises of our highest ideals.

We’re watching and we’re waiting.

HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN
THE NATION’S LARGEST CIVIL RIGHTS ORGANIZATION WORKING FOR
LESBIAN , GAY , BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER EQUALITY.

SIGN YOUR NAME TO THIS OPEN LETTER TO TARGET AND BEST BUY AT WWW.HRC.ORG

PAID ADVERTISEMENT
Paid for by the Human Rights Campaign
1640 Rhode Island Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. [phone]

[dflprincess]

5. Target is currently running an ad that really makes me grind my teeth

"Free to Be You & Me"

It uses the music from "Free to Be You & Me"

There's a land that I see where the children are free
And I say it ain't far to this land from where we are
Take my hand, come with me, where the children are free
Come with me, take my hand, and we'll live

In a land where the river runs free
In a land through the green country
In a land to a shining sea
And you and me are free to be you and me

It's bad enough they're supporting a reactionary bigot like Emmer but odds are a good chunk of what they sell is made by child labor in third world countries & and then they use this song with lots of happy kids in the commercial.

BTW - both Target & Best Buy claim they support Emmer because he's making jobs in Minnesota a # 1 priority. Apparently both companies really think we're all idiots and won't wonder why two corporations who both out source and use H1B visa workers have suddenly becomed concerned about jobs in Minnesota.

[qb]

6. I have fond childhood memories of Marlo Thomas & Free to Be You & Me

Target's hypocrisy is utterly disgusting.
The "jobs" meme is nothing more than propaganda to hide the fact that they're out to get all the cash they can as fast as they can.

[BakedAtAMileHigh]

7. Free to be me: you, not so much

Yup, I saw that ad as well. Ugh.

[Morning Dew]

8. Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel donates primarily to Right wingers

http://www.campaignmoney.com/political/contributions/gregg-steinhafel.asp?cycle=10


While "Target" may "love" its gay employees, Steinhafel personally donates to people who hate them.