Target is facing criticism once again for its gay pride collection, this time due to its collaboration with a controversial designer, Erik Carnell. The retail giant joined forces with Abprallen, a U.K.-based brand, to offer merchandise with pro-LGBTQ messages in honor of Pride month. Several of these items are available for purchase on Target's website.
However, Target's already under fire for its "tuck-friendly" swimsuits, and now, some social media users are upset to learn that Abprallen's designer, Eric Carnell, is an outspoken Satanist whose brand incorporates occult imagery and slogans, such as "Satan respects pronouns," into its apparel.
The controversial alliance sparked a backlash from conservative individuals and advocates for parental rights on various social media platforms. It got worse when people found pins and items on Abprallen's website with phrases like: "heteronormativity is a plague" and "burn down the cis-tem", and one that read "homophobe headrest" with an image of a guillotine. The most controversial one reads "Satan respects your pronouns."
"Why did @target hire a Satanist to design pieces for their recent ‘Pride’ clothing line?" Scarlett Johnson, a Wisconsin county chair for grassroots group Moms for Liberty, wrote on Twitter.
Why did @target hire a Satanist to design pieces for their recent "Pride" clothing line?
WTF👉🏽"Satan loves you and respects who you are... LGBTQIA+ people are so often referred to as being a product of Satan or going against God's will, so fine. We'll hang with Satan instead." pic.twitter.com/FLsNZNzHNa— Scarlett Johnson (@scarlett4kids) May 20, 2023
The Abprallen designer responded to the backlash by mocking "transphobes."
"These have already got the transphobes infuriated with me and I feel like quite the celebrity to think that they believe this is all some big conspiracy and I have any power to brainwash anyone when I’m just some guy drawing pictures!" Erik Carnell, the designer that founded Abprallen wrote.
Target has decided to remove these products from its Pride collection today.
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