Target Knew of Satanist-Inspired Merchandise When It Partnered with LGBT Brand, Designer Claims

When Target approached the brand Abprallen to design clothing for its 2023 “PRIDE” collection, the retail giant was fully aware of the brand’s Satanist-inspired merchandise, according to a statement posted on Instagram by the designer. 

Target initially sold three Abprallen products: a messenger bag saying “We Belong Everywhere” across trans-flag colors and planets, a tote bag with the message “Too Queer for Here” beneath a UFO, and a “Cure Transphobia, Not Trans People” sweatshirt. The three items are no longer for sale online. 

Other Abprallen products, which were not sold at Target, included Satanist imagery and glorified violence against alleged “transphobes.”

“When I was approached to create products for Target they told me that my work such as ‘Satan Respects Pronouns’ wouldn’t be a good fit, they were observant enough and had the necessary critical thinking skills to realise that my use of occult imagery is as harmless as any horror movie targeted towards adults but wanted my collection for adults to be a bit less gothic,” Abprallen’s designer, a self-described “gay trans man” who goes by “Erik,” wrote in a series of Instagram Stories. 

Target did not respond to National Review’s request for comment to confirm the brand’s characterization of the events.

Abprallen sells shirts, pins, and stickers with the design of a pastel goat head and the message “Satan Respects Pronouns.” The company also sells clothing that include the the phrases “We Bash Back” with a heart-shaped mace in the trans-flag colors, “Transphobe Collector” with a skull, and “Homophobe Headrest” with skulls beside a pastel guillotine.

Erik called Satan “cool” but denied any affiliation with Satanism.

“I am, believe it or not, not a Satanist. I lack the drive or desire to be a part of any religion—theistic or otherwise,” the brand posted. “I don’t believe in Satan (not [sic] do Satanists, actually) but I do think Satan, pentagrams, skulls, ghosts, and the occult are cool and interesting and I’ve been obsessed with horror movies and books since I was knee-high to a grasshopper.”

“Satan isn’t real, and because he isn’t real I can mould and shape him to fit my art, I can use him as a metaphor for the very few items I carry depicting him. It’s camp, it’s fun, it’s metal af. But it’s a fairy tale,” Erik added. 

Conservatives have encouraged boycotting Target in response to the retail giant’s pride-themed merchandise, a line that features swimwear which has a “light binding effect” on breasts and “tuck-friendly construction” for male genitalia. Target has instructed  some store managers to remove pride-theme merchandise from mannequins and relocate the items toward the back of the stores.

“Since introducing this year’s collection, we’ve experienced threats impacting our team members’ sense of safety and wellbeing while at work,” Target said in a statement. “Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior.”

California governor Gavin Newsom condemned Target for downplaying its commitment to LGBT pride, accusing the retailer of participating in a “systematic attack on the gay community”.