Target's Corporate Rainbow-washing: How Many Pride Attendees Knew Their Shopping Dollars Would Support Anti-Equality Tom Emmer?

At this year's Twin Cities Pride festival, Target sponsored a large area featuring photo booths, temporary tattoos, and other heavily branded promotions. To Pride visitors, it would seem that Target is an uncompromising supporter of the GLBT community. But Target's recently revealed support of anti-gay candidate Tom Emmer shows that Target's attempted outreach is little more than cynical rainbow-washing.

When it came time to choose a candidate for the highest office in their home state of Minnesota, Target chose to throw its corporate support behind Tom Emmer, by far the GLBT community's biggest opponent in the 2010 gubernatorial race.

Numerous political candidates flooded Pride with campaign literature, stickers, buttons, and supporters to spread the word about their pro-equality plans if elected governor... but Target candidate Tom Emmer was nowhere to be found.

Numerous political candidates participated in the Pride parade to show solidarity with the GLBT community. Target candidate Tom Emmer was also at a parade that same day -- 75 miles away, at the Lake City Water Ski Days.

Target's attempted outreach to the GLBT community is swiftly being revealed as nothing more than cynical rainbow-washing. Photo booths and temporary tattoos are fun, but when it came time to choose a candidate to lead our state, Target chose Tom Emmer.