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12.06.2010
Raise Awareness. Yeah Yeah Yeah... So What?
I don't have any love lost for FaceBook campaigns that ask you to change your status in support of This N' That or Blah Blah Blah, so when people started changing their profile pictures to cartoon figures and posting statuses that said they were doing so in the name of raising awareness about child abuse, I just rolled my eyes, ignoring it. After all, that strategy worked when I got message after "secret" message asking me to post where I keep my purse or what colour bra I'm wearing, so I figured I'd just ride this one out too. But this one has a different tone than the others. People have been remarkably insistent, posting statuses that say "you should do this too" and even going so far as to directly post on my wall that I should change my picture. I'm amazed at how many people have jumped on board, as well as how many people seem to think a campaign like this really makes any kind of difference at all.
Now, don't get me wrong. I appreciate that this is a well-meaning campaign, that most people are changing their profile picture because it is a small, fun thing to do. If it helps raise awareness about child abuse, well... what can it hurt? How can it be worse than doing nothing? The rhetoric of support seems to go something like this: it is easy to do. It is fun. It is catching on. If wondering why everyone is changing their picture encourages even one person to look up information about child abuse, well... then the campaign has worked! If you are arguing about it, then it works! We're talking about it! Raising awareness is better than not raising awareness, right?
Except... No.
I know I think about child abuse more than a lot of people. Not only am I a survivor, but I've spent years as an anti-violence advocate. So perhaps I'm not the best gage of how a campaign like this might impact people who don't think about this stuff every day. But here's what I worry about:
1.) For the average (not every, just average) person. this is a feel-good fix that does little to make any actual impact. My friend Jen phrased it best when she said she suspects "it's most likely that folks are reminded that children are abused and feel sad about it for a moment and change their pic and feel better about themselves. And ultimately, that's all that's happening: people feel a little less bad."
2.) We are a culture increasingly focused on internet activism. We take to the internet, not the streets. We believe that signing an online petition or posting a status update equals or stands in for actual political engagement, stands in for the kind of grassroots, on the street, in the community work that we need to do to foster real systemic change. We are becoming "slacktivists." Now, I know that many of the people who have changed their profile pics also work for change in more tangible ways, but I also know that many don't.
3.) "Raising awareness" is a pretty soft goal when it isn't tied to tangible outcome. To what end are we raising awareness? What are we asking people to DO with this information? An awareness campaign that reminds people that 1 in 8 women develops breast cancer is asking women to monitor their health. An awareness campaign that tells you a local health center is in danger of losing funding is asking you for money. An awareness campaign than tells you food is full of pesticides is trying to get you to not eat food coated in pesticides. But a campaign like this one that reminds you-- vaguely, with no data or links to orgs-- that child abuse simply exists is asking you for nothing.
4.) A supporter of the campaign sent me a link to "proof" that the campaign is working - a news clip that used the FB campaign as a starting point to lay out some statistics and recent examples of child abuse. But even that tells me little. Knowing that a man recently beat his two children to death doesn't tell me anything about the factors that fostered his violence. And without that information, I don't really know what kinds of interventions I can make to facilitate or support change. For example, over the summer, when 17-month old Roy Jones was punched to death by a stepfather who thought he needed to learn how to "act like a man" I was pretty clear on what kind of social education I needed to support - the persistent thinking that gender needs to be policed. When a child is shaken to death by a frustrated teenage mom, I know what kind of education and action I need to invest in: support for single parents, new parents, and education campaigns that remind people that shaking babies can kill them. We need to "raise awareness" about the contexts for violence, particularly the systemic factors that facilitate it, in order to know how we can create change.
5.) Finally, I find the use of cartoon characters baffling. I get that it is a fun trip down memory lane, something we associate with childhood, but so many of these cartoons are gendered in ways that are sexualized and/or violent. Further, abusers are unable to acknowledge the full humanity of their victims, so the call to "not see a human face until December 7th" seems particularly problematic in this context.
6.) I've watched this play out for a few days now, and most of the discussion about child abuse that it has generated seems to come from people like me, people who are so crabby about it they snap and start challenging participants, people who already spend a lot of time and energy educating people about systemic violence. Otherwise, no one I know has said: wow. I didn't realize child abuse is so prevalent. Or, I didn't realize there were so many awesome organizations working to end CSA - here's a link.
So I won't be changing my profile picture to my favourite childhood cartoon. I WILL take to heart those friends of mine who ask what the alternative is and suggest that people check out the organization Generation Five, which aims to end child abuse within five generations. Their site offers an important framework for analyzing child abuse, resources, and ways to get involved.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to get back to my regularly scheduled Facebook programming: spying on exes and crushes, posting shallow status updates, and complaining about the new profile page.
Now, don't get me wrong. I appreciate that this is a well-meaning campaign, that most people are changing their profile picture because it is a small, fun thing to do. If it helps raise awareness about child abuse, well... what can it hurt? How can it be worse than doing nothing? The rhetoric of support seems to go something like this: it is easy to do. It is fun. It is catching on. If wondering why everyone is changing their picture encourages even one person to look up information about child abuse, well... then the campaign has worked! If you are arguing about it, then it works! We're talking about it! Raising awareness is better than not raising awareness, right?
Except... No.
I know I think about child abuse more than a lot of people. Not only am I a survivor, but I've spent years as an anti-violence advocate. So perhaps I'm not the best gage of how a campaign like this might impact people who don't think about this stuff every day. But here's what I worry about:
1.) For the average (not every, just average) person. this is a feel-good fix that does little to make any actual impact. My friend Jen phrased it best when she said she suspects "it's most likely that folks are reminded that children are abused and feel sad about it for a moment and change their pic and feel better about themselves. And ultimately, that's all that's happening: people feel a little less bad."
2.) We are a culture increasingly focused on internet activism. We take to the internet, not the streets. We believe that signing an online petition or posting a status update equals or stands in for actual political engagement, stands in for the kind of grassroots, on the street, in the community work that we need to do to foster real systemic change. We are becoming "slacktivists." Now, I know that many of the people who have changed their profile pics also work for change in more tangible ways, but I also know that many don't.
3.) "Raising awareness" is a pretty soft goal when it isn't tied to tangible outcome. To what end are we raising awareness? What are we asking people to DO with this information? An awareness campaign that reminds people that 1 in 8 women develops breast cancer is asking women to monitor their health. An awareness campaign that tells you a local health center is in danger of losing funding is asking you for money. An awareness campaign than tells you food is full of pesticides is trying to get you to not eat food coated in pesticides. But a campaign like this one that reminds you-- vaguely, with no data or links to orgs-- that child abuse simply exists is asking you for nothing.
4.) A supporter of the campaign sent me a link to "proof" that the campaign is working - a news clip that used the FB campaign as a starting point to lay out some statistics and recent examples of child abuse. But even that tells me little. Knowing that a man recently beat his two children to death doesn't tell me anything about the factors that fostered his violence. And without that information, I don't really know what kinds of interventions I can make to facilitate or support change. For example, over the summer, when 17-month old Roy Jones was punched to death by a stepfather who thought he needed to learn how to "act like a man" I was pretty clear on what kind of social education I needed to support - the persistent thinking that gender needs to be policed. When a child is shaken to death by a frustrated teenage mom, I know what kind of education and action I need to invest in: support for single parents, new parents, and education campaigns that remind people that shaking babies can kill them. We need to "raise awareness" about the contexts for violence, particularly the systemic factors that facilitate it, in order to know how we can create change.
5.) Finally, I find the use of cartoon characters baffling. I get that it is a fun trip down memory lane, something we associate with childhood, but so many of these cartoons are gendered in ways that are sexualized and/or violent. Further, abusers are unable to acknowledge the full humanity of their victims, so the call to "not see a human face until December 7th" seems particularly problematic in this context.
6.) I've watched this play out for a few days now, and most of the discussion about child abuse that it has generated seems to come from people like me, people who are so crabby about it they snap and start challenging participants, people who already spend a lot of time and energy educating people about systemic violence. Otherwise, no one I know has said: wow. I didn't realize child abuse is so prevalent. Or, I didn't realize there were so many awesome organizations working to end CSA - here's a link.
So I won't be changing my profile picture to my favourite childhood cartoon. I WILL take to heart those friends of mine who ask what the alternative is and suggest that people check out the organization Generation Five, which aims to end child abuse within five generations. Their site offers an important framework for analyzing child abuse, resources, and ways to get involved.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to get back to my regularly scheduled Facebook programming: spying on exes and crushes, posting shallow status updates, and complaining about the new profile page.
11.30.2010
TOUR GUIDES!!!!
Oh Whoa!
I have been so busy writing about Target I forgot to tell you about my show that opens on December 3rd!!!!!!
I have a show that opens on December 3rd!
TOUR GUIDES is an insider's peek at Chicago, written by 10 poets from across the city and directed by The Lovely and Talented Coya Paz (that's me!).
Check it out :
TOUR GUIDES
Dec 3, 4, 10, 11, 17, 18
7:30pm
Chicago Center for the Performing Arts
Tickets and Info at www.guildcomplex.org
Directed and developed by The Lovely and Talented Coya Paz
Written by Jon Cofield, Kimberly Dixon, Steven Evans, Stephanie Gentry Fernandez, Sage Morgan Hubbard, Carron Little and Sandra Posadas (with additional text from Ricardo Gamboa, Tricia Hersey, and Rupal Soni).
Movement direction by Esteban Andres Cruz
I have been so busy writing about Target I forgot to tell you about my show that opens on December 3rd!!!!!!
I have a show that opens on December 3rd!
TOUR GUIDES is an insider's peek at Chicago, written by 10 poets from across the city and directed by The Lovely and Talented Coya Paz (that's me!).
Check it out :
TOUR GUIDES
Dec 3, 4, 10, 11, 17, 18
7:30pm
Chicago Center for the Performing Arts
Tickets and Info at www.guildcomplex.org
Directed and developed by The Lovely and Talented Coya Paz
Written by Jon Cofield, Kimberly Dixon, Steven Evans, Stephanie Gentry Fernandez, Sage Morgan Hubbard, Carron Little and Sandra Posadas (with additional text from Ricardo Gamboa, Tricia Hersey, and Rupal Soni).
Movement direction by Esteban Andres Cruz
11.29.2010
Target Is No Longer My Great Love. Just The One I Call When I Need A Little Somethin'-Somethin'
The rumours are true! I broke the Target boycott. I decided Target is a [bleepy] corporation, but a lot less [bleepy] than the stores I was taking my money to instead. Do I feel good about it? Nope. Here's my 100% ambivalent letter to the company:
Dear Mr. Steinhafel, Ms. May, and Whomever is Actually Going to Read This and Send Me Back a Form Letter,
I guess you win the standoff. When I heard that Target had donated money to MN Forward, in support of conservative candidate Tom Emmer, I was heartbroken. I loved Target. It was the place I went not just to buy toilet paper, sponges, and boring stuff like that, but to buy a momentary burst of feeling good - a cute glass, a stylish but totally affordable pair of boots, a notebook with a robot on it. When I felt sad or upset, I often drove to the Target five blocks from my house. It felt familiar, clean, organized - my happy place! But in addition to being a passionate shopper, I'm also queer. I live with my female partner and our child, a beautiful little girl who would exclaim, whenever we pulled into the Target parking lot, "Ida's House!" By donating money in support of Tom Emmer, Target went from being a relatively gay-friendly corporation (offering domestic partnership benefits, marching in gay pride parades) to a supporter of somebody so ardently opposed to my "lifestyle" that he supports a fringe organization that thinks stoning homosexuals is the way to go! I immediately stopped shopping at Target and joined the boycott, writing you letters, guest blogging, speaking on the radio. I guess I was as passionate about the boycott as I had been about shopping at your store!
And yet... I've started shopping at Target again. I guess you knew that would happen. Maybe that explains why, even though I wrote you 6 letters about how upset I was, you answered only 2 - with the same form letter you sent to everyone who wrote to you. Maybe that explains why you didn't counter your donation to MN Forward with a donation to a gay-friendly organization, despite a huge boycott of your stores in urban areas. You figured - wait it out. They'll come back. we're the only store where you can buy frozen peas, diapers, lip gloss, and a side table. Well... not the only store, but really... we KNOW these homos aren't going to shop at Walmart! And you're right. My decision to return to Target after 5 months came after weeks of pressure from my partner, who pointed out that of the major corporations running big stores, you are, despite it all, MORE gay-friendly than Walmart, Home Depot, Walgreens. We weren't taking our money to small business run by gay-loving store owners. We were taking it to Menard's and CVS. And my partner asked, were we really, really, REALLY never going to shop at Target again? I decided, begrudgingly, that my answer was "no." We were holding out for something we weren't going to get (acknowledgement that you were using money made from shoppers like us to support politicians who hate shoppers like us) and that eventually we would give up and go back. So I went back.
But you know what? I don't love Target anymore. I feel tense when I go there, reluctant to go inside and reluctant to linger. I buy the stuff on my list, usually toilet paper, diapers, baby wipes, the occasional pair of Assets... you know, boring stuff, and I skip the fun sections altogether: clothes, makeup, fake Christmas trees. Target is definitely not my "happy place" anymore - it is functional shopping now, and I don't know if it will ever again be the place where I drop most of my disposable income. Probably not. Because the message I got from you loud and clear, when I sent you letter after letter asking for, if not corporate accountability, than at least a personal response was this: Target doesn't give a [BEEP] about any individual shopper. So this individual shopper no longer feels good about shopping with you. I feel like a sucker. A sucker who needs saline solution (7.99) and veggie crumbles (3.49) but not a gold tote bag (34.99) or a pair of grey high heeled over the knee boots (29.99). I want those things, but I don't need to buy them. Not at Target anyway.
So I guess that's that. I'm not the longterm holdout some of my friends have been. But I do know this - I was a loyal customer. And now I'm not. I feel the same way about Target as I do about Home Depot or Best Buy - they're places I go when I'm in a hurry, when I don't have time or energy to go somewhere I like better. Do I miss the old days? Sure. But I have a sinking feeling they're gone forever. And I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. So, Target, I hope throwing a relatively small amount of money towards an organization that supports ardently homophobic (and anti-immigrant) candidates was worth losing the thousands of dollars people like me would have spent at your store. Was it? I await your response... no doubt in the form of a carefully worded, perfectly generic form letter.
Yours Truly (No More),
Coya Paz
Dear Mr. Steinhafel, Ms. May, and Whomever is Actually Going to Read This and Send Me Back a Form Letter,
I guess you win the standoff. When I heard that Target had donated money to MN Forward, in support of conservative candidate Tom Emmer, I was heartbroken. I loved Target. It was the place I went not just to buy toilet paper, sponges, and boring stuff like that, but to buy a momentary burst of feeling good - a cute glass, a stylish but totally affordable pair of boots, a notebook with a robot on it. When I felt sad or upset, I often drove to the Target five blocks from my house. It felt familiar, clean, organized - my happy place! But in addition to being a passionate shopper, I'm also queer. I live with my female partner and our child, a beautiful little girl who would exclaim, whenever we pulled into the Target parking lot, "Ida's House!" By donating money in support of Tom Emmer, Target went from being a relatively gay-friendly corporation (offering domestic partnership benefits, marching in gay pride parades) to a supporter of somebody so ardently opposed to my "lifestyle" that he supports a fringe organization that thinks stoning homosexuals is the way to go! I immediately stopped shopping at Target and joined the boycott, writing you letters, guest blogging, speaking on the radio. I guess I was as passionate about the boycott as I had been about shopping at your store!
And yet... I've started shopping at Target again. I guess you knew that would happen. Maybe that explains why, even though I wrote you 6 letters about how upset I was, you answered only 2 - with the same form letter you sent to everyone who wrote to you. Maybe that explains why you didn't counter your donation to MN Forward with a donation to a gay-friendly organization, despite a huge boycott of your stores in urban areas. You figured - wait it out. They'll come back. we're the only store where you can buy frozen peas, diapers, lip gloss, and a side table. Well... not the only store, but really... we KNOW these homos aren't going to shop at Walmart! And you're right. My decision to return to Target after 5 months came after weeks of pressure from my partner, who pointed out that of the major corporations running big stores, you are, despite it all, MORE gay-friendly than Walmart, Home Depot, Walgreens. We weren't taking our money to small business run by gay-loving store owners. We were taking it to Menard's and CVS. And my partner asked, were we really, really, REALLY never going to shop at Target again? I decided, begrudgingly, that my answer was "no." We were holding out for something we weren't going to get (acknowledgement that you were using money made from shoppers like us to support politicians who hate shoppers like us) and that eventually we would give up and go back. So I went back.
But you know what? I don't love Target anymore. I feel tense when I go there, reluctant to go inside and reluctant to linger. I buy the stuff on my list, usually toilet paper, diapers, baby wipes, the occasional pair of Assets... you know, boring stuff, and I skip the fun sections altogether: clothes, makeup, fake Christmas trees. Target is definitely not my "happy place" anymore - it is functional shopping now, and I don't know if it will ever again be the place where I drop most of my disposable income. Probably not. Because the message I got from you loud and clear, when I sent you letter after letter asking for, if not corporate accountability, than at least a personal response was this: Target doesn't give a [BEEP] about any individual shopper. So this individual shopper no longer feels good about shopping with you. I feel like a sucker. A sucker who needs saline solution (7.99) and veggie crumbles (3.49) but not a gold tote bag (34.99) or a pair of grey high heeled over the knee boots (29.99). I want those things, but I don't need to buy them. Not at Target anyway.
So I guess that's that. I'm not the longterm holdout some of my friends have been. But I do know this - I was a loyal customer. And now I'm not. I feel the same way about Target as I do about Home Depot or Best Buy - they're places I go when I'm in a hurry, when I don't have time or energy to go somewhere I like better. Do I miss the old days? Sure. But I have a sinking feeling they're gone forever. And I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. So, Target, I hope throwing a relatively small amount of money towards an organization that supports ardently homophobic (and anti-immigrant) candidates was worth losing the thousands of dollars people like me would have spent at your store. Was it? I await your response... no doubt in the form of a carefully worded, perfectly generic form letter.
Yours Truly (No More),
Coya Paz
9.09.2010
Sigh....
Amores, I'm STILL writing letters to Target and STILL waiting for a considered response. Here's the latest. I hope you're still with me. And if you are, don't forget to send a letter of your own: gregg.steinhafel at target.com, denise.may at target.com, and guest.relations at target.com.
I don't know about you, but this Boycott Target thing is really getting on my nerves. There are a lot of things I want to buy at Target. For example, I was reading Lucky magazine this weekend and saw an ad for a SUPER cute purple sweater dress at Target. For a moment, I forgot that you had donated $150,000 to an organization that supports an incredibly anti-gay and anti-immigrant candidate, and just saw the possibility. I have red hair and hazel eyes, and I look great in purple. Plus, a sweater dress is one of my favorite items of clothing - conservative enough that I can wear it to my job as an educator, but form fitting enough that it complements my curves. At $24.99, it is totally affordable, and it would go beautifully with the brown knee high boots I bought at Target last fall. My first, unfiltered instinct was to jump up and go to Target. That might sound like I'm exaggerating, but I'm not. I live 5 blocks from a Target, and am an unrepentant compulsive shopper. When you debuted your Anna Sui Gossip Girl collection, I was there at 8am in the morning, coffee in hand, so running out to buy a sweater dress on impulse is as in-character for me as breathing and wearing lip gloss. But then I remembered: I can't shop at Target. Not right now. Not yet.
But I want to! So... I'm writing you (again!) to ask if you have any plans to balance out the contribution you made to MN Forward with a donation to a candidate or organization that supports gay civil rights or humane immigration reform?
I know that's not an easy proposition. You're probably worried that if you did that, your Christian right wing consumers would freak out. I think that's true, but believe me: your gay shoppers and gay allies are freaking out already! And we may be a smaller percentage of your consumer base but I'm comfortable stereotyping us as passionate shoppers. I'll use me as an example:
In the past two weeks, I've purchased the following: a lamp, a pack of pens, 3 picture frames, diapers, baby wipes, nylons, 3 different Revlon lip colors, blush, garbage bags, sponges, a ring, Draino, two types of air freshener (that's an embarrassing story involving a baby who just learned how to take off her diaper), a bunch of magazines, a notebook, shampoo, conditioner, hair dye (that red hair I mentioned requires a monthly touch up), moisturizer, thumbtacks, an electric tea kettle, 2 nail polishes, a large bowl, and an eye shadow. I probably would have purchased every single one of these items at Target (you know, the one conveniently located just five blocks from my house?) but instead, I've been driving around to all kinds of places that I don't find nearly as appealing or impulse-shopping worthy as Target. You'll notice I haven't bought any clothes of late, which is pretty rare for me. I'm on a super tight budget right now because I'm in the middle of buying a house, so I guess that's the ONE good thing about this boycott fiasco: I have never, ever, ever walked out of a Target without buying myself a little "treat" (a purse, a dress, some earrings, cute boots) but believe me, it is really easy to walk out of a Menard's with nothing but the things on my list. My budget thanks you but my closet does not.
Okay, so that house I mentioned? Our closing date is coming up in three weeks and I would love, love, LOVE to buy all kinds of new home necessities at Target: new bath mat, new shower curtain, hammer, shop vac (do you sell those?), picture frames, lamps, rugs, gardening tools, lawn furniture, Halloween accessories that show we're going to be fun neighbors, trash cans, storage containers, a cute purple sweater dress, and much much more. You know from my last four letters that I take this boycott seriously, so PLEASE Target, please with whipped cream and half my bank account on top, make this right before October. You can do it. I know you can.
Your (once loyal) shopper,
Coya Paz
8.17.2010
The news from Target this week is that talks with the HRC over donating money "broke down" when Target decided it needed more time to think about what political donations mean. I wish they'd started thinking about that BEFORE they donated money to MN Forward! (And anyway... I'm not a huge fan of the HRC.)
So, my letter writing campaign continues! And is expanding. I've been asked to be a guest blogger at Velvet Park (Hi Velvet Park!). I think that's great, although I would be HAPPIEST if Target found a way to make it right and I could go back to shopping there!
Here's my latest letter. Hope you're writing too! The addresses are guest.relations@target.com and Gregg.Steinhafel@target.com
Hello Mr. Steinhafel,
This is my 4th letter to Target, and I'm still waiting for a considered response as to why I should keep shopping at Target despite your contributions in support of a vehemently anti-gay political candidate. Because, believe me, I really really REALLY want to shop at Target. The past month has been miserable. I never realized how often I went to Target until I stopped going to Target! At least 3 or 4 times a week, I find myself needing some small thing around the house and I think, "Oh, I'll just run to Target and..." POP! My bubble bursts and I remember that I can't.
I almost caved last week. I got some really enticing coupons celebrating the fact that the Target 5 blocks from my house just remodeled, adding a grocery section. I also saw a really cute ad for your clothes in the Fall Fashion issue of Glamour, and I thought, "I'd like to own a brightly colored plaid shirt!" And my mind drifted dreamily to thoughts of Summer Clearance. And I read an alarming article that said Target stock had dropped 3.5% in the wake of the boycott threats, while Walmart's and Costco's had gone up. Now, I don't believe for a second that Walmart or Costco are MORE gay friendly than Target, so I posted a Facebook status announcing I was going to give up my letter writing campaign/boycott and go back to my favorite store. And the response from my 950-plus friends was outraged! (I guess I got a little taste of what you're feeling). They reminded me that change requires sacrifice. They reminded me that giving up now would send you the message that you could just wait it out. But best of all, one of my parents reminded me that there is nothing in "that store" she loves more than her gay son, her gay step-daughter (me), our partners, or our children. And that was important. Because as much as I love buying stuff at Target--and I do LOVE it--I love myself more.
I know you're in a difficult position. By donating money to MN Forward, who in turn gave the money to Tom Emmer, you meant to support a big-business candidate who would help you advance your corporate interests. I get that. It makes sense. But you also donated to a candidate who is so explicitly anti-gay he's donated money to an organization that says executing gays is a "moral" action. (And by the way - Tom Emmer is pretty anti-immigrant too, which a lot of the gay organizations aren't talking about, but I think is important to mention.) So what can you do? If you donate money to a pro-gay candidate or an organization like HRC, your "conservative" shoppers are going to freak out, too. I mean, playing politics seems like a no-win situation for a company that relies on trying to make a broad base of shoppers happy. I wish you'd thought of that earlier, but you didn't, and now I'm stuck. In order to feel good about shopping at Target, I need to know that you've not only apologized for your donation (which you have) but that you've thought of a way to balance the damage that donation is going to do to my life and the lives of people like me. Until then, I can't shop at Target! And I would like to shop at Target!
Since I last wrote to you, I've had to purchase the following at other stores: diapers, coffee, socks, two lip glosses, an eyeshadow, barrettes, a potty, and soap. It was a slow shopping week for me, but here's where I'm really going to miss you: I just moved into a new office and I need all kinds of things to make it feel like "home" - a lamp, four frames, a desk calendar, a pencil holder, pens, folders, binders, paper clips, etc. I don't even know where I'm going to get that stuff - Office Depot does not have Target's flair for style and color.
There is some good news though. I've been posting these letters on my website, on Facebook, and on Twitter and I've been invited to be a guest blogger at VelvetParkMedia.com, a site devoted to "dyke culture" and LGBTQ issues. So, I'll be reaching out to even more people on this issue. I hope I'll have something good to tell them soon, even something as small as you actually responded to my concerns with something other than a form letter (hint, hint).
Until then, I'm dreaming of Target.
Love (?)
Coya Paz
8.09.2010
Still no answers from Target. I wish they loved me as much as I love them... Sigh...
Anyway, here's my third letter.
Dear Esteemed Target Bigwigs,
This is my 3rd letter to you. I don't mean to seem like a deranged stalker or someone with too much time on my hands, but I really want you to tell me something that will help me feel better about shopping at Target. Really. And not just some form letter. A tangible reason.
To recap previous letters: Target is my favourite store. There is one 5 blocks from my house and I shop(ped) there at least 3 times a week. I'm also gay. I have a female partner and a beautiful 18-month old daughter who already knows how to say Target. The news that Target had donated money to MN Forward, which in turn used it to support Tom Emmer, hater-of-gays and actively-intent-on-denying-us-out-rights was REALLY UPSETTING. Target is supposed to be awesome, not just for its clean lines, hip-yet-affordable clothing selection, and lack of Muzak playing in its stores, but also for donating to community-based charities, offering LGBT partner benefits, and marching in the Gay Pride parades.
Now, instead of shopping at Target, I am forced to go to other stores that are, frankly, depressing and boring. I need to buy some diapers, some Draino, some shampoo, some wash clothes, some body wash, lightbulbs, some tinted moisturizer, and some batteries. I would also like to buy a brightly colored dress I can wear to a garden party, some kicky flats, and a set of drinking glasses. What other store offers all of that in one perfectly organized shopping experience? NONE! I have to go to at least 3 other stores. Which sucks.
I love Target. Right now, I'm wearing a dress from Target, a bra from Target, and my ponytail holders are from Target. I'm sitting in a room where I see a lamp from Target, a printer from Target, a storage bin from Target, a stool from Target, binders from Target, a hat from Target, and on and on and on. I am a LOYAL customer.
So please, tell me something about what Target is going to do to balance its support for people like Tom Emmer. I get that you need to invest in people who support big business. I'm not even opposed to that - in addition to loving Target, I also love H&M and Ikea. But people like Tom Emmer have social policies that really and severely impact my life for the negative. So, I think it is only fair that Target do something (hint hint: donate money) to organizations that will work to make things easier for LGBT people. Then balance will be restored, we can all go back to duking it out in courtrooms and over family dinners, and I can shop at Target.
PLEASE give me an answer!
Love?
Coya Paz
8.05.2010
Why, Target, Why?
Last week I posted my letter to Target, asking them to counter their support for anti-gay political candidates with actual dollars to LGBT friendly organizations. I got back a totally douche-y form letter that answered none of my concerns, so I wrote back. My letter is below, and I encourage you to send one of your own to: guest.relations@target and Gregg.Steinhafel@target.com. A boycott is most effective when you can 1.) demonstrate that it is adding up to economic impact and 2.) demonstrate that it is adding up to social impact. So tell that exactly what you're not spending at Target and tell them you heard this from me (or someone else) and who you are telling. Just because we don't represent an adovcacy group doesn't mean we don't represent a large community.
Dear Ms. Hanson and Mr. Steinhafel,
Last week, I wrote you a heartfelt letter asking you to give me more information about how Target is going to counter its support for candidate Tom Emmer (via MNForward) by investing actual dollars into LGBT-friendly organizations or candidates. I told you that Target is my favourite store in the whole world, and that the idea of boycotting Target makes me really sad because I so genuinely love shopping at Target. I also told you that I had already read the statement from Gregg Steinhafel about why Target was supporting MN Forward and said "I get it... Target is a big business and it makes sense that it wants to support legislation and candidates that are friendly to corporations." Okay... those weren't my exact words, but that's the gist of it. I understand Target's point of view on that matter. And so that's why I asked about "countering support for Tom Emmer by investing in LGBT-friendly organizations or candidates..." etc etc... see first line of this letter. What did I get back? A form letter that responds to none of my concerns and gives me absolutely no reason to go back to shopping at Target.
I understand. You're busy. You're getting hundreds, if not thousands, of letters about this. But I'm busy too. I'm driving all over the city to buy things I would usually buy at the Target five blocks from my house. Since I wrote to you last week, I've bought the following at other stores: diapers, contact lens solution, sand toys, veggie burgers, an inflatable raft, candy, plastic cups, a baby rattle, and flip flops. I guess it is lucky for my budget that the drugstores and grocery stores replacing my trips to Target don't also sell cheap but stylish clothes, because I usually throw in a treat for myself when I go to Target. But still... It is a pain in my you-know-what, and I miss Target. I miss the convenience of a store where I can buy groceries, cute clothes, office supplies, video games, and contact lenses in one place. But I also miss the feeling of being at Target. It might sound crazy, but I miss the smell of Target. As I said in my previous letter, Target is the place I go when I want to feel better about things. I just like it there. And now you are implicitly supporting a candidate who rails against my gay lifestyle. My gay lifestyle, by the way, looks a lot like any other married couple's lifestyle, including spending tons of money at Target buying Must Have Needs for the Home, Like Sponges and Decorative Towel Holders.
So please, give me a tangible reason to go back to shopping at Target. And by "tangible reason," I mean concrete information about how you are countering your support for Tom Emmer's big business but anti-gay agenda with dollars to a different organization or candidate who understands that gay people can be a powerful consumer base, especially when we're not hiding from people like Tom Emmer or that band he loves, You Can Run But You Can't Hide, which calls for stoning people like me. And Target: BELIEVE ME... I would not have started boycotting my very favourite store without doing my research, so please don't send me back a form letter telling me that MN Forward is an equal opportunity supporter of diverse candidates.
I'm looking forward to hearing back from you. I'm hoping you tell me something so great I can go back to shopping at Target in time to pick up cute fall wardrobe staples. Until then, I'm going to keep posting these letters on my website, and drumming up support for the boycott. But I'd much, much, MUCH rather be shopping.
Sincerely,
Coya Paz
Concerned Shopper with an Awful Lot of Friends
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