Copyright New York Post
Nothing screams “fall fashion” like a cozy midweight scarf complemented with a side of class struggle. That’s the message from embattled retailer Target, who’s been caught pushing communist literature in fall fashion ad campaigns geared toward urban women of a certain age, The Post has learned. This is happening at a time when the company can hardly afford any more culture war beefs. Karl Marx’s political treatise “Capital” — beloved by radical leftists the world over — has been given a “landmark new translation” and was spotted nestled in Target’s carousel ads on Instagram. It is somewhat subversively being displayed smack in the middle of unrelated products like a pair of women’s knee-high gold-buckled riding boots, a black faux leather midi skirt, MAC lip pencil and a pair of burgundy wide-strap slip-on sandals. The notorious critique of capitalist culture was spotted by an employee of The Post while scrolling on her personal Instagram feed. She initially thought it was strange she was getting an ad for Target, considering she hasn’t shopped there in over a year. Intrigued by a midweight, woven charcoal gray scarf, the employee swiped through Target’s featured product offerings. The ad campaign was all women’s apparel until the middle at slot, when The Post employee was given the chance to order Marx’s problematic publication. “Capital – by Karl Marx (Paperback) New arrivals are here! Discover the latest must-haves at Target,” the caption below the ad read. “What did I do to deserve ‘Das Kapital’?” the bewildered employee commented, referring to the original German title and noting the irony of a book which takes a dim view of capitalism being offered by a huge corporation, nestled between luxury goods. Online searches showed copies of Marx’s “Capital” is available for purchase from Target. The book is widely published and also available through Amazon, Barnes and Noble and other booksellers. Target is no stranger to controversy over politically charged products in its stores — as the retailer continues to crawl out from a major boycott stemming from its 2023 Pride collection. That year, activists blasted the retailer for selling LGBTQ+ themed clothing for children and infants as well as “tuck-friendly” women’s swimsuits with “extra crotch coverage.” Following the uproar, target reported its first quarterly sales drop in six years, with the store blaming customers’ “negative reactions” to its rainbow blitz for the sales slump. Trying to shake its far-left image and cozy up to the new presidential administration, the Minneapolis-based discount chain announced in January it would axe its DEI programs. Target is, “concluding its three-year diversity, equity and inclusion goals” and will stop its reports to the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, according to an internal memo obtained by The Post at the time. Rampant shoplifting and violence has also plagued the retailer, which was forced to close nine stores in 2023 due to uncontrolled crime in large, Democrat-run cities, citing “theft” and employee safety. More bad news came this summer, when Target’s shares slumped 7% after investors expressed disappointment with the company’s choice for a new CEO, Michael Fiddelke. In “Capital” Marx’s dense critique of capitalism, he compares capitalists to vampires sucking the “living labor” out of workers and calls for a revolutionary overthrow of capitalist systems. Throughout the 20th century the book was adapted for every communist nation and its philosophical arguments have interpreted and used by despots across the globe, leading to the deaths of untold millions in Russia, China, Cambodia and beyond. Target did not respond to questions from The Post asking about placing communist literature in front of Instagram users as they browse handbags and lipliner. Target’s internal advertising arm, Roundel, works with brands to develop personalized ads, according to its website. “We use our deep guest insights to create smart, personalized ad campaigns that bring guests the offers and products they love. “Roundel works with over 2,000 vendors to deliver advertising that feels uniquely Target, showing up at the right time, in the right place,” Target’s ad shop says on its website. Once Target has identified products it wishes to feature, the platform — in this case Meta’s Instagram —then works to even further narrow down the selection to deliver the best possible ad for a user, formulating that user’s age, gender, location and income level in order to decide what that user should see.
