Target Censorship Fiasco Shows That Conservatives Do Have The Power To Influence The Culture

(AP Photo/Nati Harnik, File)

 

Well, well, well, it looks like Target may have had a change of heart on its decision to remove a book from its inventory because it was critical of transgenderism and its impact on young girls. Perhaps they are not quite as beholden to the radical left as they led us to believe previously? 

Advertisement

As you might recall, Target posted a tweet on Thursday announcing that it would stop selling a book titled “Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters,” by Abigal Shrier. “Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention. We have removed this book from our assortment,” the company tweeted in response to a progressive activist who wokesplained to the company, explaining that Shrier’s book did not pass muster with the radical left. 

Shrier slammed Target’s decision. “Target.com just made my book disappear,” she tweeted. “Does it bother anyone that Woke activists and spineless corporations now determine what Americans are allowed to read?”

Many others lashed out at the retail giant, decrying its attempt to suppress the content of the book. Others pushed back, criticizing Shrier for writing such a supposedly hateful piece of work. 

The Daily Caller reported that Target reversed its decision to remove Shrier’s book. In a statement to the news outlet, the company said, “Yesterday, we removed a book from Target.com based on feedback we received. We want to offer a broad assortment for our guests and are adding this book back to Target.com. We apologize for any confusion.” 

Advertisement

As of the writing of the Daily Caller article, Target had not yet put the book back on its website. However, as of this writing, the book appears on their website and is currently “sold out.” This isn’t surprising given the groundswell of support that the author received when news broke of Target’s decision to remove Shrier’s work. 

In fact, the book ranked in Amazon’s top 100 only a few hours after Target’s decision came to light. Chad Felix Greene posted a tweet acknowledging the success of the book. He wrote:

“Yesterday @Abigail Shrier’s book, Irreversible Damage was at around 3,200 in all books on Amazon. Impressive on its own,” Greene said on Twitter. “But YOU made it a top 100 book in a few hours. We can influence these businesses. We have power together. The conservative movement can change culture.”

Greene’s point should not be lost on any conservative who is concerned about the left’s dominance over the culture. Progressives tried to get a book canceled and failed. Target had every reason to give in to the extreme left’s demands in this instance. But the outcry from conservatives likely played an important role in getting them to reverse their decision. 

Advertisement

Target realized that conservatives shop at their stores as much as progressives, and losing that key customer base would do tremendous damage to their bottom line. In this case, the left could not pose a dire enough threat to the company to compel it to change its behavior. This story provides a perfect lesson for those on the right: We do have the power to win these cultural battles. We just have to be willing to use it. 

 

Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Follow me on Twitter and Parler: @JeffOnTheRight

 

Recommended

Join the conversation as a VIP Member

Trending on RedState Videos