When activists called for a boycott against Target stores earlier in 2025 because of its DEI policy rollback, nobody knew how successful it would be. Then came reports of a 4.1 percent year-over-year drop in foot traffic in the first quarter. It’s clear the boycott had an impact.
But now a new boycott focus is underway, and it has the potential to be even bigger. According to USA Today[, The People’s Union USA, which describes itself on its website as a grassroots movement focused on economic resistance, corporate accountability, and real justice for the working class, is calling for consumers to keep their money out of McDonald’s.
John Schwarz, the organization’s founder, posted on Instagram, asking people to boycott the fast food giant. The boycott began June 24 and is slated to run through June 30. The company will also be included in a future boycott in August. The organization has urged a series of economic blackouts since February, focused on Target, Amazon, General Mills, and Wal-Mart, among others.
In January, McDonald’s said in a prepared statement that it would be “retiring” its supply chain’s commitment to broad diversity principles and would change the name of its diversity group to the “Global Inclusion Team.”
Citing the Harvard University Supreme Court case that struck down affirmative action in college admissions, the company said that it assessed how the decision would impact the corporate landscape and pivoted to this new direction.
A number of companies have made similar moves since Donald Trump was elected to a second term in the White House last November. Trump’s administration has all but snuffed out diversity programs in the federal government and has tried to manipulate the corporate sector into doing the same.
This prompted the activist community to threaten boycotts against companies that had once championed diversity in their hiring and supplier programs, but suddenly decided to abandon it. Meanwhile, some companies, most notably Costco, openly embraced DEI, noting that it was good for business. An increase in net sales followed, an indication that rejecting anti-DEI sentiment did not hurt the company’s bottom line.
People’s Union USA, in the meantime, has called for boycotts against Amazon, Nestle, Starbucks, and other corporations. But the focus on McDonald’s, and its market capitalization of a reported $204 billion.
In one of its social media posts, People’s Union USA accused McDonald’s of price gouging, tax dodging, and an abandonment of effective DEI policy. Schwarz says the boycott is “not about fast food, it’s about the power of the people.”
McDonald’s says that its actions have been mischaracterized, however. “As a brand that serves millions of people every day, McDonald’s opens our doors to everyone, and our commitment to inclusion remains steadfast,” the company said in a prepared statement to Nation’s Restaurant News.
While the McDonald’s boycott called by the People’s Union USA was only expected to last a week, the Target boycott is continuing — and a major religious group has found controversy as a result.
The National Baptist Convention one of the largest predominantly African American churches in the U.S., serving more than 7 million members, is taking heat from the public after accepting a $300,000 donation from Target, reports Capital B Atlanta.
Pastor Jamal Bryant has been leading the charge against the retailer, calling for a $2 billion commitment to the Black business community, among other demands. On June 22, he told his New Birth Baptist Church congregation that he told the group’s leadership that they have “one week to send me in writing that the Baptist Convention stands with the boycott, stands with the oppressed, stands with the marginalized, stands with the nameless and faceless people who are on the front lines.”
Boise Kimber, president of the National Baptist Convention, defended his congregation’s relationship with Target, saying in a prepared statement that the group is working on a three-year plan with the African American community.
“Target’s generous donation will help us provide scholarships, support senior citizens, and invest in entrepreneurship programs that will uplift our people and the future,” said Kimber.
