Ga. pastor behind Target boycott turns focus to Dollar General
ATLANTA, Ga. - The Atlanta pastor behind the Target boycott has now set his sights on Dollar General.
In interviews with CNN and USA Today, New Birth Missionary Baptist Church’s Jamal Bryant said he’s calling for an “electronic protest” of the giant discount chain. Participants are asked to demand change by calling, emailing and calling the company out on social media.
As with Target, Bryant is critical of Dollar General’s diversity, equity and inclusion walkbacks under pressure from the Trump istration. Last year, the company fired its chief diversity officer, and this year it removed language promoting diversity from its annual finance report.
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But this protest is different from the one against Target. Bryant noted that for many Americans in rural areas, Dollar General is often the only place they can buy groceries and fresh produce.
“For those communities, who that is their only option, we don’t want to cause further damage,” he told CNN. “But in urban areas, we’re asking them to stay away.”
Dollar General has more than 20,000 locations in the United States. According to the data company ScrapeHero, Georgia ranks No. 2 behind Texas for states with the most Dollar General stores, at 1,109.
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Last week, Target announced that sales dropped in the first quarter of 2025 and will likely slip all year. On Jan. 2, the company’s stock was about $137 — but on Wednesday, the market closed at about $96 per share.
The company itted the boycott against it, which Bryant helped popularize in February, was partly to blame.
“I just want to put an asterisk on what happens when our community mobilizes and stays focused,” Bryant told CNN. “We have canceled Target.”
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