So, now, Target has partnered with popular streamer and influencer Kai Cenat and his content team, AMP (Any Means Possible). Together, Cenat and the retail giant have launched a personal care brand called “TONE,” which is available exclusively at Target.
The group, which includes Cenat, Duke Dennis, Agent 00, ChrisNxtDoo, and ImDavisss, kicked off the campaign with a livestream sleepover inside a Target store. But while AMP celebrated the moment, viewers were far more conflicted. The internet was quick to point out the contradiction: Black creators partnering with a brand that not only pulled back its DEI commitments, but has also repeatedly fumbled opportunities to repair that harm, even in meetings with groups like the Congressional Black Caucus and Rev. Al Sharpton.
Pastor Jamal Bryant, who has led the charge in boycotting Target, appeared to place responsibility on the corporation for soliciting performative partnerships with Black public figures, rather than with influencers like Cenat themselves.
“If @target would spend as much energy and resources meeting the demands of the target fast @targetfast40 as they are on influencers, paying preachers, and going to @essencefest, we would be further along,” Bryant wrote on Instagram, referencing Target’s presence at the convention center during this year’s Essence Festival, which has also been the subject of controversy. “Doing what’s right for our people is always made to feel like an inconvenience. Stand on business and don’t go back in until they handle us right!”
Journalist Jemele Hill was significantly less polite while addressing Target and its targeted partnerships with Black entertainers.
“Target is spineless. They don’t want to anger Donald Trump, so they won’t publicly apologize or rectify what they’ve done. Instead, they’re going to keep throwing checks at certain members of the Black community, hoping we will lose our will to fight. They’re just waiting to give the right Black celebrity a check so that it will galvanize people to return,” Hill said, referencing the NFL’s partnership with Jay-Z amid its Colin Kaepernick controversy. “Eventually, Target is going to partner with someone who is universally beloved in our community, force folks to make a hard decision, and run this same game.”
So, yeah — we’re still boycotting Target, and neither Cenat, Sharpton or whatever influential Black person is next in line.
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Great Job Felicia Ray Owens & the Team @ Felicia Ray Owens Source link for sharing this story.
