- Reaction score
- 4,085
- Location
- Upper US
Since March 5th, Ash Wednesday, Black congregations around the nation have for Lent. The 40-day fast, led by Dr. Jamal Bryant, Pastor of New Birth Missionary Church in Stonecrest, Georgia, was in response to Target's compliance with President Donald Trump's orders to get rid of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives because of claims of "discrimination." Target not only for employees - joining American corporations like Amazon, Walmart, Mcdonald's, Ford, and Paramount - but reneged on its REACH (racial, equity, action, and change) initiative to invest over $2 billion into Black-owned businesses by the end of 2025, following the murder of George Floyd in 2020.
During the fast, Target's stock prices have sunk, ts biggest drop in four years at $88.73 per share in the beginning of April, from $266.38 a share in November 2021. The store's foot traffic has also declined significantly, dropping to single digit percentages, the lowest it has been since the fast started. Nearly 200,000 people have registered for the Target fast at a constructed by Dr. Bryant's church, which provides instructions and over 300,000 shopping alternatives patrons can utilize to find their needs.
With Lent now over, and Christians able to resume their vices, Dr. Bryant and churches throughout the country are now pivoting from a Target fast into a full-on boycott - and they intend to add on other businesses, which will be announced in the coming days. In a Tuesday night town hall at the Salem Bible Church in Lithonia, Georgia, Black business owners and community members gathered to hear next steps for the movement. In a live stream, to over 1,000 people on Facebook and YouTube, Dr. Bryant announced, "Target has crucified its integrity on a cross called humanity and regrettably for them there will be no Easter. You cannot resurrect when your intention was never for the people. You cannot be an ally for the oligarch and forget the marginalized and the oppressed." Target's CEO Brian Cornell requested a meeting with Dr. Bryant and Al Sharpton last week. The corporation did not respond to Rolling Stone's request for comment
"Forty days is not the end, it's the benchmark," Dr. Bryant, who was the youth director for the NAACP, tells Rolling Stone. Although Target wasn't the only store to roll back its inclusive hiring practices, Bryant set his sights on the chain - which is based in Minneapolis where Floyd was murdered - because of their erasure of DEI and REACH initiatives and the economic support it receives from the American Black community at large. "It's one of the highest employers of Black people in the country, and then [they] walked away from its pledge for George Floyd after the election of Donald Trump, so we wanted to target them first," he said.
The Target fast has ignited conversations about the Black dollar and how Black consumership keeps the American economy afloat, despite Black Americans having the least amount of wealth in the country. "This is a mark to the country that Black America realizes its spending power and shows what we can do when we unify our voices and our focus," Dr. Bryant tells Rolling Stone. "People are going to have to be more selective under this Trump-Elon administration with tariffs abounding."
In an attempt to create an economic system amongst the Black community, Dr. Bryant has put a lot of focus on "spending Black," going as far to create a Black Mall initiative, where Black vendors set up shop to sell their goods, at four other Black megachurches in the nation on Easter weekend. At Bryant's church alone, at least one hundred Black vendors set up shop, where consumers had direct access to Black businesses, promoting their own marketplace. "We're looking to multiply it and have 10 to 20 churches participate on Juneteenth weekend," says Bryant. "The churches are really stretching their muscles to become involved and engaged."
