Actually, You Need to Support Black-Owned Brands at Target More Than Ever

Much like Issa Rae, I'm rooting for everybody Black. I shop Black, vote for Black politicians, support Black athletes of all sports, donate to Black-owned organizations who fight for equal rights, and give my time and talents to my Black church. However, navigating ways to root for everybody Black has looked different following the Trump administration's decision to overturn diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices. "Billions of dollars are spent annually on DEI, but rather than reducing bias and promoting inclusion, DEI creates and then amplifies prejudicial hostility and exacerbates interpersonal conflict," The White House said in a statement accompanying Trump's executive orders.

The decision has trickled down to many retailers (Amazon, Walmart, and Meta, to name a few) who are pulling back or completely canceling their DEI initiatives — Target being a major player. The company announced on Jan. 24 that it would end its DEI goals that were set to increase Black employees' representation and advancement, improve Black shoppers' experiences, and promote Black-owned businesses. The retailer also reported they will pull back on efforts to hire and promote women, minorities, LGBTQ+ people, and veterans.

And yes, this is the same Target that, in 2021, following George Floyd's murder, announced its Racial Equity Action and Change (REACH) initiative that would invest more than $2 billion in Black-owned brands, including the addition of 500 Black-owned brands to their shelves. With their new DEI rollback, among those most affected are the Black brands that already face significant barriers in terms of supplier distribution and funding.

If the news has you questioning how to respond, you're not alone. The Internet has been split on boycotting Target or doubling down on our Black-owned dollar spend at the mega-retailer. Tabitha Brown, who sells kitchenware at Target, said in an Instagram video that although she understands the anger, she asks for those who are boycotting to reconsider. "If we all decide to boycott and be like, 'No, we're not spending no money at these organizations,' so many of us will be affected and our sales would drop out, our business would be hurt," Brown said.

And I get it: the disgusting and unfair decision makes you not want to give Target any of your coins. But, in doing so, are you giving Target more incentive to divest from Black-owned brands? "If we all decide to stop supporting said businesses and say, 'I can't buy nothing from there,' then, those companies get to say, 'Oh, your products are not performing,' and they can remove them from the shelves," Brown continued on Instagram.

Some in favor of the boycott are urging shoppers to buy directly from Black-owned brands' websites instead. However, Target, a mega-retailer in multiple states, has the infrastructure, platform, and dollars to get products in front of the masses. "We have dolls on our websites, but having your dolls in mass retail stores gives you a different kind of visibility to millions and really helps us expand," Black-owned doll brand Beautiful Curly Me said in a post on Instagram. Having products in Target grants brands accessibility and frees them from the worry of storing product. Brown echoed that sentiment in her post as well. "Everyone does not have the funds or the means or the availability or the space to house their own products," she explained.

Although your initial thought might be to boycott Target for failing to maintain support for Black-owned businesses, that strategy could have unintended consequences. "Pulling Black dollars from these retailers doesn't hurt the corporations as much as it hurts the brands you love," hair-care founder Maya Smith of The Doux wrote on Instagram. Put simply, if we want Target to keep us on the shelves, it requires sales.

Of course, whether you choose to boycott Target or not, the choice is entirely yours to make. Ahead is a list of Black-owned businesses currently at Target as well as links to their brand websites to support them now and always.