Local civil rights activists and community leaders are keeping the pressure on Target, demanding the Minnesota-based company reverse its decision to eliminate DEI and account for the two billion dollars they pledged to Black businesses in the aftermath of the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd in 2020.
"There is an assumption, particularly today in an age of instant gratification, that we would know the impact and that it would be immediate," said Dr. Yohuru Williams, founding director of the Racial Justice Initiative at St. Thomas. "This is bigger than the boycott. It is exposing people to the idea that they have power and then thinking about the ways in which you can build networks of individuals who can both organize and then mobilize through that organization."
Ahead of the Feb. 28 economic blackout, leaders shared their vision for a sustained boycott of Target.
"We are making a difference. We may not be able to see the numbers from the Target sales yet, but we know what is happening in communities across America, that this has caught fire," said Monique Cullars-Doty, co-founder of Black Lives Matter Minnesota and Black Lives Matter Twin Cities.
"This is not about just Target, it is about demanding yourself to be dignified," said Jaylani Hussein, CAIR-MN Executive Director.
Civil Rights Leader and Attorney Nekima Levy Armstrong says the Twin Cities is on the pulse of what is happening nationally with people standing up against corporate greed.
"And we're gonna keep this boycott going for as long as we need to," Nekima said. "For some reason, Target thought that in Minneapolis, they could announce the roll back of diversity equity and inclusion, and we were gonna let it slip by. But we said, 'Absolutely not!'"
It's going to take a long time to dismantle capitalism – and that is by design. So if you've been searching for the impact of Friday's 24-Hour Economic Blackout and you're not finding any meaningful data, don't be discouraged.
Capitalism is a complex system that touches nearly every part of our lives. Breaking from it involves shifting ideologies and building solidarity across different social groups.
"Boycotts are not overnight tools. They're built on people gradually coming to the realization about participation and its overall effectiveness," said Dr. Yohuru. "Rosa Parks gave up her seat on that bus. People assume that the community spontaneously bought in, but the fact of the matter is, her organizing had begun long before she ever refused to give up that seat."
History shows that sustained organizing can lead to meaningful change, even against deeply rooted systems.
Historical examples
The Labor Movement (Late 19th and Early 20th Century) – The rise of organized labor.
What Happened: During the Industrial Revolution, workers faced harsh conditions, long hours, and low wages. In response, workers began to organize into unions to demand better wages, working conditions, and labor rights. The creation of the American Federation of Labor (AFL) was pivotal in advocating for workers' rights.
Impact: Over time, the Labor Movement led to significant labor reforms, such as the 8-hour workday, better wages, safer working conditions, the establishment of the minimum wage, and the formation of social safety nets like unemployment benefits. The movement was instrumental in challenging capitalist exploitation, even if it did not entirely dismantle capitalism.
The Civil Rights Movement (1950s-1960s) – The fight for racial equality in the United States.
The Women's Suffrage Movement (Late 19th and Early 20th Century) – The fight for women's right to vote.
Each movement faced significant obstacles and didn't achieve all of their goals. Still, they brought about meaningful change by challenging powerful systems and advocating for the marginalized.
"There is value to coalition building, where you recognize that everybody's political consciousnesses are not going be at the same place," said Dr. Yohuru. " Just getting people to talk about the issue, face the issue, confront the issue can be incredibly valuable and make change.”
What's next?
The original 24-Hour Economic Blackout on February 28 was organized by People's Union USA. Their next mass economic protest is happening Friday, March 7 through Friday, March 14. The week-long blackout is for all Amazon platforms, products and services.
Amazon | Amazon Basics | Amazon Essentials | Amazon Fresh | Amazon Go | Amazon Kindle | Amazon Pharmacy | Amazon Prime | Amazon Web Services | Audible | Goodreads | IMDb | MGM Studios | Ring | Twitch | The Washington Post | Whole Foods | Woot! | Zappos
An opportunity to dream
Dr. Yohuru sees this moment as an opportunity to pick up where Dr. Martin Luther King left off prior to his assassination in 1968. Dr. King was organizing a Poor People’s Campaign to bring 2,000 poor people of all races to Washington D.C. to meet with government officials and demand jobs, unemployment insurance and a fair minimum wage.
At the time, Dr. King told SCLC staff, “We have an ultimate goal of freedom, independence, self-determination, whatever we want to call it, but we aren’t going to get all of that now, and we aren’t going to get all of that next year. Let’s find something that is so possible, so achievable, so pure, so simple that even the backlash can’t do much to deny it."
Dr. Yohuru said, "A lot of people that show up now or find themselves in this conversation may have very well voted for the person who's inflicting this pain in the way that ultimately brings them to this greater realization. But I think it's a long overdue."
"I'm grateful to be in this fight with this community," said Nekima. "We're multigenerational. We're multiracial. We're multiethnic. We come from different income levels, different educational backgrounds, but we are standing united."
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