On Wednesday’s episode of the Politically Georgia podcast, Atlanta Journal-Constitution journalists Tia Mitchell and Patricia Murphy talked with Pastor Jamal Bryant of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Stonecrest about why he is leading a boycott against Target.
Target announced in January that the retail giant was rolling back its diversity, equity and inclusion policies, after President Donald Trump issued executive orders for federal agencies to do the same.
Bryant called for a Lenten Fast from the retailer for 40 days in March. Now he is escalating it to a full boycott.
“The impact has been absolutely undeniable,” he said, adding that 200,000 people have gone to the church’s website to pledge in the effort.
But the movement is not without criticism, as some worry Black-owned products sold at Target will take a hit.
Bryant says he’s actively working to provide capital for those businesses by listing them on the boycott’s website and holding Black marketplaces all over the country.
“We’re looking for alternative ways to try to undergird and support those businesses so that they’re not adversely impacted,” he said.
Credit: NYT
Credit: NYT
Bryant is calling on Target to meet four demands, including depositing $250 million in Black-owned banks, restoring the commitment to DEI, pledging $2 billion to Black businesses and creating pipeline community centers at 10 Historically Black colleges and Universities.
Since talking to Target executives Bryant says they’ve agreed to pledge the $2 billion to Black businesses, but they have yet to meet the other demands, so the boycott will continue.
Since the mobilization of the boycott, Target’s stock price has dropped, continuing a slide prompted by other factors, including the imposition by the Trump administration of tariffs on foreign goods. Target’s stock price was $124 at the end of February, but is hovering in the low $90 range now.
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On the next episode of ‘Politically Georgia’: Patricia and Greg Bluestein talk 2026 race.
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