The AFA has a new ‘Target’

November 22, 2005

The American Family Association is like a jukebox that only plays one song. The religious right group doesn’t have a lot of money, or members, or influence, but they can organize a boycott at the drop of a hat.

According to an alert issued yesterday by James Dobson’s Focus on the Family, the AFA is worked up about another alleged injustice. This time, it’s Target and its holiday-celebrating ways.

Target stores have continued to ban Salvation Army kettles from storefronts and the phrase “Merry Christmas” from advertising, which has prompted the American Family Association (AFA) to launch a boycott of the retail giant.

In just three days, more than 300,000 people pledged to steer clear of Target during the biggest shopping weekend of the year — the days following Thanksgiving.

Randy Sharp, director of special projects for AFA, said, on average, more than 4,000 people are signing on to the boycott every hour.

“Shoppers are growing disgruntled by companies that are choosing to do away with a simple greeting like ‘Merry Christmas,'” he said, “and they are showing it with their pocketbooks.”

First, as a factual matter, Target insists it has no policy against using the phrase “Merry Christmas.” Second, as a financial matter, Target shouldn’t worry too much about the AFA; the group’s targeted companies usually find their bottom line going up during an AFA boycott.

Regardless, the right’s perceived “war against Christmas” is getting pretty tiresome. Fox News’ John Gibson has a bizarre book out, while Bill O’Reilly, Charles Krauthammer, and the truly silly Committee to Save Merry Christmas will probably enjoy the holiday season by whining a lot.

And what’s truly annoying is to hear complainers lose sight of those who really suffer. Last year, armed police broke up a Christmas Mass at an underground Catholic church in eastern China, arresting the priest, demolishing a makeshift pulpit and scattering two thousand worshippers. Around the same time, some seasonal temp at the mall wished Bill O’Reilly a generic “Happy Holidays” and he felt like a victim.

A little perspective, people.

How much money does James Dobson receive from the Walton family??

  • Claim: 4,000 people an hour signing on to the boycott.

    Reality: A couple of people in a bare office stuffing envelopes with the press release announcing the boycott.

    When I spell ‘delusional’ I spell it ‘AFA’.

  • … and planned parenthood is all over Target for their policy on allowing pharmacists opting out of filling Plan-B prescriptions…

    So it seems no one will be shopping at Target…

  • On October 27th Planned Parenthood posted the following on its website:

    Target Pharmacist Refuses to Fill Emergency Contraception Prescription — Fight Back
    Thu, 10/27/2005 – 3:21pm
    Submitted by Christy
    Category: In the States | Pharmacist Refusal | Target Corporation | Missouri
    A 26-year-old Missouri woman was refused EC when she handed her prescription to a pharmacist at a Target store in Fenton, MO, on September 30. The woman was told by the pharmacist, “I won’t fill it. It’s my right not to fill it.” Target does not support a policy to have valid prescriptions for birth control, including emergency contraception, filled in-store without discrimination or delay!

    Perhaps some marketing genius decide the best way to counter this bad publicity would be to court an ineffective boycott by AFA.
    Too cynical?

  • LOL – I visited the AFA website where they are claiming to be responsible for a $4 drop in Target price on 11/16/05 because of the AFA boycott started on 10/7/05.

    Morons – Target stock is up $4 overall since they started the boycott.

    On the page where you sign the petition, the AFA advises you that “An edited version of this petition will also be sent to Costco, BJ’s, Sears/K-Mart, Wal-Mart, Kohl’s and other stores banning “Merry Christmas.” Who’s left?

    Don’t pay any more attention to these annual Christmas persecution stories. It’s the AFA’s way of generating a few extra bucks in donations during the holiday. It’s the best way to get the suckers’ email addresses – sign an AFA petition and you’ll hear from the AFA again, that’s for sure.

  • One of the many contradictions of the Christian religion. If God controls everything why do these people need to do anything at all? If he deems Target as a force of evil I’m sure that he’ll lob a few lightning bolts over at the nearest cash register.

  • Target’s contraceptive policy is unacceptable. No store should be allowed to have a policy, where it’s a possibility that a woman may need to go to another pharmacy to get her prescription filled. I won’t tell other people what to do, but I don’t plan on shopping at target unless that policy changes. Though I respect reasonable differences of opinion over abortion regulations, this issue really makes me nuts. We’re talking about potential rape victims here…

  • Who is ruining Christmas? Christians who think they are somehow persecuted because some clerk flatly says “happy holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas.” Fuck them. I don’t even celebrate Christmas and even I know that isn’t the meaning of Christmas.

    These people don’t even know the defintion of persecution.

    What a bunch of fucking Grinches.

  • Whatever happened to people complaining that commericialism killed Christmas? That was actually a legit complaint which could lead to a lot less Christmas overkill for the rest of us.

  • Target is likely getting more bad PR and possibly loss in sales because of the birth control issues than it ever will from this group of loonies.

    Of course this war agains Christmas is just silly. Please.

  • The “Merry Christmas” thing is a strawman. In my opinion, what is really happening is that the WASP male is losing power. As Blacks, women, secularists, other religions and gays assert their voice, the males in this formerly white patriarchal society see they are losing their authority. Falwell and his ilk are fearful and they want to take this country back to a time when white Christian men were the authority figures. This silliness of the Merry Christmas thingy is indicative of their desperation.

  • This evening a woman in line ahead of me at the grocery produced a passport to prove her age for a pack of cigarettes. It seemed pretty obvious she did not speak English well by her mannerisms & gestures. The checkout girl handed her the smokes & a receipt and said ‘Happy Holidays’ and judging by her response I could tell she got it. Too bad more don’t “get it”…
    I might even go to Target on Friday…nah………

  • This is a conundrum…

    IF Target was a chain that otherwise was honorable (i.e. they hired only pharmacists that did their job, leaving their own “morals” out of it) then it would be a simple matter to have SOME group put up a “support Target” list…bet we could get LOTS of folks to sign a counter-boycott, pledging to shop at Target in the coming Holidays…even have a check box in there for folks that “normally would not” shop there.

    But…since they seem to be offending both the real americans that believe in keeping religion private and not being taliban, and the american taliban, they lose out on both ends.

  • No Salvation Army kettles? Why not?

    The Salvation Army may have religious affiliations, but are they scaring away customers?

  • Target’s reason for banning the Salvation Army: “We receive an increasing number of solicitation inquiries from non-profit organizations each year, and determined that if we continue to allow the Salvation Army to solicit, then it opens the door to other groups that wish to solicit our guests.”

    Not a cultural sensitivity thing at all, just a bunch of jerks. A nationwide ban on non-profit solicitors? Is even Wal-Mart that low?

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