Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the
nation's largest gay advocate, will drop Target and Best Buy from its
annual buyer's guide after the companies supported an anti-gay
candidate.
Both companies are facing growing
criticism over their donations to MN Forward, an independent
political fund supporting Tom Emmer, the anti-gay Republican nominee
for Minnesota governor.
The
progressive group MoveOn.org has launched ads urging shoppers to
boycott the Minnesota-based retail giant for its $150,000
contribution. The group says corporations should stay out of
politics.
Institutional
shareholders are pressuring Target to rethink its donation policies
to avoid future political stumbles.
HRC had urged the companies to even the
score by giving an equal amount of money to a pro-gay candidate.
Target apologized for the MN Forward donation but rejected HRC's
request on Monday.
On Friday, the gay rights group
announced that Target and Best Buy would be dropped from its annual
Buying
for Equality Guide.
HRC Vice President of Communications
Fred Sainz said in a statement that the group “will not encourage
people to shop at either store” and that “both companies will
soon be removed from it [the guide].”
The buyer's guide is based on rankings
from HRC's Corporate Equality Index, which measures a company's
support for its LGBT employees. The index takes into consideration
company policies that affect gay workers, such as banning
discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity and
providing equal access to benefits.
Both Target and Best Buy scored 100% in
the group's 2010 index, released late last year. HRC said it is
reevaluating its methodology before releasing its 2011 index.