A retail boycott is hitting major US businesses Friday, as an online campaign calls for Americans to spend nothing at places such as Walmart ( WMT ), Target ( TGT ), Amazon ( AMZN ), and McDonald’s ( MCD ).
The motivations for the so-called "economic blackout" are varied, according to John Schwarz, founder of the grassroots organization The People’s Union .
Schwarz first called for the blackout in an Instagram video that gained more than 8 million views. He said he wants to end alleged price-gouging and tax avoidance by major corporations.
"We can protest by not shopping at McDonald's, Walmart, Target," Schwarz said.
"If you have to go out and shop that day, go to a local business, a small, locally owned boutique. But if you can, don't go out and spend a dime that day."
Schwarz said his message advocating for price reductions became conflated with a separate consumer pushback on companies that have backed away from diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies.
"I support it, but I'm not connected to DEI," Schwarz said, noting that he is instead focused on price gouging and tax avoidance.
Target, Walmart, Amazon, and McDonald's were among the many companies that announced recent about-faces on diversity , a list that also includes Google ( GOOG ), Meta ( META ), and Tractor Supply ( TSCO ).
Now all seven of those companies appear on a list of DEI rollbacks maintained by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) as part of a " Black Consumer Advisory " initiative launched earlier this month designed to encourage support for businesses that expand their commitments to diversity.
"If corporations want our dollars, they better be ready to do the right thing," NAACP CEO Derrick Johnson said in a statement announcing the project.
Target is also mentioned as a specific focal point of another advocacy group, Black Wall Street Ticker , that has called for a "corporate fast" from spending any money at the Minneapolis retailing giant roughly coordinating with the 40 days of Lent starting March 5 through April 17.
"To see companies we’ve supported heavily — like McDonald’s, Ford Motors, Amazon, Meta, and Walmart— betray our long-standing relationship is beyond disheartening," the group says on its site, but "the greatest insult comes from Target."
Walmart has faced some repudiation, too, from some of its own investors. More than 30 shareholders representing $266 billion in assets sent a message last month to CEO Doug McMillon that called the retailer's recent DEI policy changes " very disheartening ."
"As Walmart shareholders, we are also concerned to see our company give into bullying and pressure from anti-DEI groups," the group said in its letter.
The pushback illustrates the difficult spot many companies are in as they try to navigate new legal threats surrounding DEI from the courts, conservative activists, and a Trump administration that is encouraging DEI revisions across corporate America.
Retailers are particularly challenged because so many Americans rely on their products or visit their stores — and they often find themselves in the political spotlight for a multitude of reasons.
Walmart CFO John David Rainey recently told Yahoo Finance that the retailer aims to keep prices low under tariff pressure, but the company did not respond to a request for comment on the call for boycotts.
Pleas for DEI-based boycotts, however, may have already had an effect on foot traffic. One retail analyst, Joe Feldman of Telsey Advisory Group, said he suspects shoppers are heeding those pleas based on a look at recent data — even though he can’t be 100% certain.
"Is it more than that? Maybe," he said. "But I think that's a key driver."
For the week of Feb. 3, Walmart foot traffic was down 2.9% year over year, and Target foot traffic was down 8.6%, according to Placer.ai. Meanwhile Costco — a retailer that has affirmed its support for DEI policies and listed that way in the NAACP's "Black Consumer Advisory" — was up 5.7% year over year.
The following week of Feb. 10 also showed a decrease year over year for Walmart and Target, with foot traffic down 1.4% and 3.9%.
Costco ( COST ) showed a 4.6% rise.
"You can see it just dropped like a rock based on Placer.ai data," Feldman said about Target’s decline in the three weeks after social media accounts started calling for retail boycotts.
