Posted on 11/23/2004 11:16:59 AM PST by FairfaxVA
Some consumers and advocacy groups are upset that retailers including Target have banned the Salvation Army's Christmas tradition of bell-ringing volunteers who solicit donations for the poor.
The bans have touched off controversy among retailers. Some top sellers seem to be catering to the charity to win over consumers ticked off at other stores for kicking the bell-ringers off their property.
"The Salvation Army has a remarkable history of providing year-round service to families, and Big Lots is proud to continue our tradition of helping with their fundraising goals," this Columbus, Ohio, retailer said in a statement after Target's announcement it would ban the charity.
They were followed by auto parts chain AutoZone and the nation's No. 3 bookseller chain, Books-A-Million Inc., the Boston Globe reported. BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. has also stepped in to help by allowing the kettles at its stores.
The nation's No. 1 retailer, Wal-Mart, has also welcomed the bell-ringers, but with restrictions: They must stand outside stores and are limited to 14 days, the Globe said.
The bans by Target, Circuit City, Best Buy, Home Depot and others come amid the Salvation Army's 113th year of doing what it can to fend for the poor and unfortunate.
Shoppers "are coming here for a reason, and the reason is not for solicitation of any kind by a third party," said Steve Mullen, a spokesman for Circuit City.
Target's decision "was a huge shock and a huge source of discouragement for us," Lt. David Grindle, a spokesman for the charity, told Fox News Channel.
The retailer pointed to its corporate policy forbidding solicitation.
"Like many nationwide retailers, Target Corporation has implemented this policy in order to be consistent with all the groups that request access to our stores and to provide our guests with a comfortable, distraction-free shopping environment," the company says in a statement posted on its Web site.
"Target does not permit individuals (including political candidates and/or their campaign organizations) or non-profit organizations to solicit donations, distribute literature, sell merchandise, or hold events on our premises.
"Our company has many other means by which it can support organizations whose charitable programs fall within our corporate giving guidelines." Target says it gives $2 million annually to "neighborhoods, programs and schools across the country."
The policy will no doubt be a blow to the charity, which last year collected 10 percent of its $93 million in holiday collections from Target shoppers, Fox News said.
'A Lump of Coal'
It's unclear whether the kettle-kicking retailers dislike the Salvation Army or are merely acting out of concern for customers. What is clear is that not all customers like their decisions.
"It's a disgrace," South Boston resident Phyllis McElaney told the Globe. "The bell ringers remind you of the meaning of Christmas, that it's about love, caring, and giving."
"Call it a safe bet - maybe even a bright-red, bull's-eye, fashionable, smartly priced bet - that American life has become too corporate or complex when Target banishes the Salvation Army's bell ringers," Indianapolis Star columnist Ruth Holladay wrote.
Others say they'll take their business elsewhere.
"I thought it was wrong because the Salvation Army is a good cause. They take care of lots of good people around the country and in our community. I won't be supporting Target this year, at all," once-loyal Target shopper Jeffrey Trimm told Christian World News.
Robert Knight of Concerned Women for America told CWN, "Millions of Christians give Target millions of dollars in their Christmas shopping, and what they've gotten from Target in return? A lump of coal.
"We had one tangible aspect of Christmas, beyond the commercial reason. We had the Salvation Army out there, a Christian charity collecting money for the poor at Christmas. What a great counterweight to the all-mighty dollar which is being worshipped in these stores," he added.
The opposition has even produced a Web site called bantarget.org, calling on all shoppers to spend their money at businesses that support bell-ringers.
Grindle says if the charity can't replace its losses, it will have to cut services.
The ACLU wins when they can pick away one opponent at a time. I'm going to make it a point to shop at the store where I see the bell ringer. And I wonder how much leftist Senator Mark Dayton of the Dayton retailing empire (Target and others) influenced this decision.
I don't think they have anything to do with the management, kind of like Teresa, just living off the family.
BTW, the local Target doesn't selling fishing gear because, as the manager told me, "IT'S CRUEL TO THE FISH"
Just can't make this stuff up. PC is evil.
LOL What a bunch of nutjobs.
For all your defense of Target, I have one simple question. Why should anyone shop at Target? Even you should be able to respond, it isn't that tough of a question.
He's not here to respond to questions, but rather to rant. Just ignore him.
Target won't get a nickel from me this year.
The Salvation Army will see my annual donation increase this year.
I'm a bit old to be out in the cold ringing a bell. But when I see someone doing it, I put money in.
More importantly, I am on their mailing list, and I write checks. I suspect that one of my checks would amount to as much as I could get by ringing a bell for a couple of days.
I agree. I suspect that Flashbunny simply likes to debate. I have a friend who, no matter what you say will always disagree and take the other side. You can't beat them with facts.
Target is like K-Mart in size. Has good-enough-looking cheap clothes that I will wear at work and not worry if I happen to destroy them in an unexpected surge of latent energy.
My email to Target sent earlier today:
As a Target and Mervyn’s cardholder and a regular customer for decades, I must say that I am beyond disappointed to hear of your company’s decision to ban the Salvation Army kettles from the sidewalks in front of your stores. I realize that your lawyers gave you a thousand reasons why banning the Salvation Army was legally advantageous, but there was a time not so long ago that even major corporations like yours occasionally did things because they were “right”, not just because they were legally expedient.
The Salvation Army is a wonderful organization that has helped, clothed, and fed tens of millions of people around the world and across our nation over the past century, and they do it with a smile, a bucket, and a bell. Bell ringers do not harass customers, they do not ask for donations, and they do not interfere with them in any way. They just stand there and ring that bell. The Salvation Army bell is a sound many of us associate closely with the Christmas season, and the "Holiday Shopping Experience" that your company seems so concerned about will be incomplete without it. It is a reminder of the spirit of the holidays, and that we should give not only to those we love, but to those less fortunate than ourselves. How can that be offensive to anyone?
You have the right to run your company any way you wish, but my family is under no obligation to support your company in doing so. I mailed my checks off today to zero out and close my Target accounts (enclosing a letter similar to this one), and will no longer be shopping in any of your stores. I have recommended that my extended family, my co-workers, and the families in my children’s Scouting troops do the same, and most have readily agreed that your position on this issue is unacceptable and that your company shouldn’t be supported. This year, we will be restricting our Christmas shopping to stores that remember what the season is all about.
Target, you are truly the Grinch Who Stole Christmas.
XX XX
Modesto, CA.
Because K-Mart put up a big fat lesbian anti-Bush spokesperson for that company a few years ago. And I need cheap clothes to ruin.
Excellent letter, it covers all the key issues. Walmart's lawyers apparently don't see the same problem Target does.
Do the math. Target says it donates $2 million a year to "charities", a small portion of which goes to the SA. Last year alone, the Salvation Army kettles took in an estimated $9 million from donors outside of Target.
Target isn't doing the SA any favors, they are taking millions of dollars out of the mouths of the hungry and off the backs of the poor just to make a few lawyers happy. I won't support that.
Why do yuppie emporiums like these get away with not having the clanging bells of the Salvation Army at their entrances? Why is it that the stores of the poor and middling classes, like Wal-Mart and Target, have to bear the brunt of these kettle drums?
Is it that the beautiful people are too good to have their shopping experience interrupted by these bell-ringers?
Tacky of Target, I think.
Sal Army is one of my favorites. And part of Christmas.
I was able to toss all my change into a bucket at Big Lots today.
Also got a nice Thanksgiving Centerpiece 75% off.
The article got that wrong. Target donates $2 million PER WEEK.
They are one of the most generous corporate donors in the country.
Why do yuppie emporiums like these get away with not having the clanging bells of the Salvation Army at their entrances? Why is it that the stores of the poor and middling classes, like Wal-Mart and Target, have to bear the brunt of these kettle drums?
Is it that the beautiful people are too good to have their shopping experience interrupted by these bell-ringers?
It's probably a question of traffic. How many people go into a Target store, as opposed to an individual Starbucks? Or Sharper Edge - or do you mean Sharper Image?
Traffic.
I was planning to boycott Target but I may reconsider after some of the things you've pointed out.
But don't be too hard on those who plan to boycott Target. Many of us are so tired of PC mgmt decisions that always give in to the grinches such as the ACLU. But what can you expect from a Mpls-based company. My employer is headquartered in Mpls and they just keep going more PC all the time. Can't call Christmas "Christmas". It has to be winter holiday. Why can't a private business do what they darn well please?
Anyway God bless you and have a Merry Christmas.
JK will be one of the bell ringers outside of WalMart again this year. We have supported the Salvation Army for years.
Okay, I'm willing to hear the evidence. Do you have any?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.