EXCLUSIVE – Many rank-and-file Target staffers are questioning if they "belong" at the retailer after a disastrous rollout of LGBTQ Pride month merchandising has left staffers on both sides of the issue peeved at the company’s high-powered decision makers, according to a well-placed insider.
"Our teams feel left behind. The vast majority of our team feels like decisions are being made that impact them. It doesn’t matter which side you’re on, you now feel like people are making decisions without our best interest," a Target insider told Fox News Digital.
"Because people have made decisions for us that put us in a very difficult position, there are a lot of folks that feel like, ‘Do we belong at Target?’ They question that for the first time in a long time," the insider said.
TARGET CONFIRMS 'ADJUSTMENTS' TO PRIDE PLANS AFTER LGBTQ MERCHANDISE CAUSED 'THREATS' TO EMPLOYEES
Target has featured massive June Pride month displays on an annual basis, but this year’s merchandise caused problems before the celebration of LGBTQ even began. Female-style swimsuits that can be used to "tuck" male genitalia made waves on social media, and then a variety of products for children and ties to a "Satanic" designer further irked critics.
The Target insider, who has spent nearly two decades at company, previously told Fox News Digital that the retail juggernaut was taking steps to avoid a "Bud Light situation" after LGBTQ Pride merchandise infuriated some customers. Target then confirmed "adjustments" were made to some in-store Pride displays with some items being removed altogether.
Target said it was tamping down the Pride merchandising to help keep employees safe, as rank-and-file staffers have been threatened and harassed because of the over-the-top displays. But now many of the same employees that Target’s corporate overlords were seeking to protect feel abandoned by the company.
"Whether you’re on the right, and you felt left behind in the beginning or you felt like you didn’t belong, and now if you’re LGTBQ you also have questions if you’re welcomed anymore," the insider said. "It’s the first time in our company’s history that they question Target’s commitment to that."
The insider, who is devastated that innocent staffers have been forced to defend the big-box store from angry customers on both sides of the issue, said employees inside Target stores have nothing to do with the decisions and protesting "will get you nowhere."
Most rank-and-file employees were left in the dark about changes, with many not knowing the Pride sections would be moved and items would be pulled until they noticed it themselves.
"The decisions are made high above us and staffers have no say," the insider said.
The insider noted that Target CEO Brian Cornell, who famously said "woke" capitalism is "great" for their brand days before the Pride controversy erupted, doesn’t have much to worry about. His predecessor, Gregg Steinhafel, received a "golden parachute" of over $60 million when he was shown the door in 2014. If Steinhafel received that much nearly a decade ago, the insider suggested Cornell would walk away with significantly more regardless of any self-inflicted controversy.
It has also been revealed that Target partnered with GLSEN, a K-12 education group that focuses on getting districts to adopt policies that will keep parents in the dark about their child's in-school gender transition, providing sexually explicit books to schools for free and integrating gender ideology at all levels of curricula in public schools. GLSEN, which has signage inside Target stores’ Pride displays, has received at least $2.1 million in donations from Target.
GLSEN signs were still present in some locations as of Wednesday despite the company "adjusting" some of the polarizing merchandise.
Separately, the retailer's Pride collection has been linked to controversial designer Erik Carnell of Abprallen, who is an outspoken Satanist whose brand features occult imagery and messages like "Satan respects pronouns" on brand apparel.
While conservatives were bothered by the products, LGBTQ leaders are frustrated by the way Target brass has handled the backlash. California State Sen. Scott Weiner, D-San Francisco, a member of the LGBTQ legislative caucus, said activists need "a strategy on how to deal with corporations that are experiencing enormous pressure to throw LGBTQ people under the bus."
Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom even accused Target of participating in a "systematic attack" on LGBTQ communities across the country.
Target shares have plummeted since the saga began, dropping for nine straight days through the end of May before posting a small gain on Thursday.
The insider said that many Target stores are expecting protests as Pride month officially kicks off. Protests surrounding Pride are nothing new, but the insider said they will look much different this year.
"It’s both sides now, as Pride kicks off, whereas we would have expected it from religious groups and churches, probably now it’s both," the insider said. "There is this uneasiness as we head into Pride. There is uneasiness for sure."
Pride merchandise also includes onesies and rompers for newborn babies, children’s coloring books that featured images of adults kissing, a variety of adult clothing with slogans such as "Super Queer," party supplies, a "Gender Fluid" mug, and a "Grow At Your Own Pace" saucer planter.
Fox News’ Hannah Grossman, Hanna Panreck, Kristine Parks and FOX Business Network’s Suzanne O’Halloran contributed to this report.
