CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Some Target store customers are debating whether to keep shopping at the big box retailer after the company took a stance saying transgender people can use whatever fitting room or bathroom they identify with in its stores.
"Inclusivity is a core belief at Target," the company said in a statement posted on its website Tuesday. "We believe that everyone -- every team member, every guest and every community -- deserves to be protected from discrimination and treated equally."
The company's statement came in response to laws like North Carolina's controversial House Bill 2, also known as the "bathroom bill." The legislation requires people use public restrooms and locker rooms based on the gender on their birth certificates.
Critics said the law is discriminatory. Supporters said it's common sense. Groups like the American Family Association have asked people to boycott the stores, calling its policy "dangerous."
Some customers told Eyewitness News they won't go that far, but it will change how they shop.
"It would just change how I am as a customer here. I'll take more precautions," Madison Buezzo said.
"I'm a female and if somebody identifies that way I would hope they feel comfortable using whatever they please. I just don't want people to take it too far," Caitlin Husar said.
House Bill 2 only applies to government buildings so companies like Target are legally allowed to set their own policies.
The policy is not new, a Target spokeswoman told the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
"It's a restatement of policy," spokeswoman Molly Snyder said. "It's just us being very overt in stating it."
Cox Media Group
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