Target limits 2024 Pride collection to select stores

Target limits 2024 Pride collection to select stores

May 10 (UPI) -- Target confirmed Friday it will not offer its 2024 collection of Pride-related products at all of its retail stores.

The Minnesota-based retail chain said in a statement issued Friday it will still participate in Pride Month festivities in June, but its Pride collection will only be available in select stores.

Target made a similar move to limit its Pride collection availability to certain retail stores last year.

The company said the decision about which stores will offer its Pride product line would be "based on historical sales performance."

The retailer added its Pride+ Business Council will continue to host internal events and experiences for interested team members. Target has a long history of supporting LGBTQ+ initiatives and will once again participate in Pride events in its hometown of Minneapolis.

Last year, the company said in a statement it "experienced threats impacting our team members' sense of safety and well-being while at work" related to its Pride collection, resulting in it "making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior."

Target was founded in 1902 and operates approximately 1,956 stores in the United States.

The company has faced criticism in the past for its LGBTQ+ merchandise.

Conservative activist groups have threatened employees in some locations and organized boycotts because of LGBTQ+ displays in stores, leading to Friday's announcement.

Last year, Republican governors from Indiana, Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri and South Carolina spoke out against Target's support of an organization that works to end bullying in schools based on sexual and gender identity.

The governors also suggested Target's Pride month clothes and merchandise might violate child protection laws in their states.

Editor's note: A previous version of this story used outdated information, which has been revised.