Petition to boycott Target over transgender bathroom policy hits one million

More than one million people have signed a petition organised by a conservative Christian nonprofit, pledging to boycott the US department store Target for letting transgender people use bathrooms and fitting rooms that correspond with their gender identity.

File photo of a Target store in Miami.

File photo of a Target store in Miami. Source: AAP

More than one million people have signed a petition promising to boycott Target in the United States after the department store, not the sex on their birth certificates. 

 was organised by conservative Christian nonprofit American Family Alliance.

The AFA argues the new bathroom policy would allow a man to say he "'feels like a woman today' and enter the women’s restroom ... even if young girls and women are already in there." 

"Target's policy is exactly how sexual predators get access to their victims," the petition reads.
A spokesperson for Target the company intended to stick with its new policy. 

"We certainly respect that there are a wide variety of perspectives and opinions," the spokesperson said.

"As a company that firmly stands behind what it means to offer our team an inclusive place to work—and our guests an inclusive place to shop—we continue to believe that this is the right thing for Target.
The executive director of the Transgender Legal Center, Kris Hayashi,in the US that 70 per cent of transgender people reported being denied entry, harassed or assaulted when trying to use the bathroom. 

“We’re just trying to live our lives and use the bathroom just like anyone else,” he said.

Mr Hayashi said there were already laws in place to protect all people from harassment in bathrooms and changing rooms, and those protections would cover men dressing as women to prey on women and children.

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Published 28 April 2016 11:08am
Updated 2 May 2016 11:58am


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