Chaos has struck retail giant Target as multiple stores across the country have received bomb threats amid controversy over the company’s promotion of the LGBT agenda.
In Cleveland, news station WOIO-TV received a bomb threat on Friday afternoon targeting five Target locations.
The message, sent via email, made it very clear that it was in response to a perceived threat against gay and transgender people.
It read: “Target is full of [redacted] cowards who turned their back on the LGBT community and decided to cater to the homophobic right wing redneck bigots who protested and vandalized their store.
“We won’t stand idly by as the far right continues to hunt us down. We are sending you a message, we placed a bomb in the following targets.” Five addresses were listed, four in Ohio and one in Pennsylvania.
Trending:
“We will continue to bomb your targets until you stop cowering and bring back your LGBT merchandise,” the message continued. “We will not be erased, we won’t go quietly.”
WOIO reported the threat to local law enforcement and the FBI.
The threat does not appear to have been legitimate, although the station reported that “precautions were quickly taken to ensure no one got hurt.”
In a tweet, WOIO noted that “swatting,” or essentially sending police on a wild goose chase, became a fourth-degree felony in Ohio at the beginning of April.
A law making swatting calls a fourth-degree felony in Ohio went into effect on April 3.
https://t.co/KcsOY7ynZS— Cleveland 19 News (@cleveland19news) May 26, 2023
Similarly, in Utah, KUTV-TV reported that a Target in Layton was evacuated after false bomb threats were made.
Other Target locations were threatened in Salt Lake City, Taylorsville and Provo, but only the Layton store appears to have been evacuated.
Police Sgt. John Ottesen noted that Target’s LGBT merchandise, which has caused a bit of a cultural kerfuffle in recent weeks, was specifically mentioned in the Utah threats.
Not unlike Bud Light, Target has found itself smack-dab in the center of a raging cultural battle over hot-button LGBT issues, particularly transgenderism.
The retailer came under a searing spotlight when reports began circulating that its “Pride” items not only targeted minors, but had actual ties to Satan.
The backlash intensified when “tuck-friendly” swimsuits with “extra crotch coverage” were discovered for sale at Target. “Tucking” is a practice in which men conceal the outline of their genitals in an attempt to appear female.
Target has lost roughly $9 billion in market value since the controversy began.
