Target apologizes for children’s clown Halloween costume after backlash

InternationalTarget apologizes for children's clown Halloween costume after backlashBy Reuters -Aug 25, 2026Add ARY News on Googleimage: reutersAAResizeTarget apologized on Monday and said it had pulled a Halloween costume from sale depicting a circus ​clown that critics said evoked Blackface and minstrel shows. The product, sold as the “Kids’ Glows Under ‌Blacklight Circus Clown Halloween Costume,” prompted a backlash on social media, with some consumers saying it resembled a racist caricature. “As a company, we know we got this wrong, and we are deeply sorry,” Target said in a statement. “The costume is offensive and should never have ​been part of our assortment. It is no longer available for sale.” It is the latest optics headache ​for the U.S. retailer as it tries to right its ship after a stretch of ⁠poor sales. The company also faced criticism over its handling of products in its 2023 Pride Collection, and for changes ​to its diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in the wake of President Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Target declined ​to comment on who designed the product – which was sold under the retailer’s seasonal Hyde and EEK Boutique brand – or the process by which it was green-lit for sale. In its statement, Target said it was “looking closely at how this happened and what needs ​to change.” Some Black shoppers, who felt alienated after Target’s 2025 DEI rollbacks, expressed fresh disappointment on Monday. Sheletta Brundidge, a Minneapolis-area ​business leader, views the costume as an indirect result of the DEI decision. “You rolled back diversity,” she said, “so who’s in the ‌room, now, ⁠to say ‘hey, this is wrong?'” US threatens countries doing business with Iran Target acknowledged in its statement the costume was “especially hurtful for our Black guests, team members and partners.” Though a Target-owned brand, Hyde and EEK products have been resold on websites of retailers like Walmart and Amazon and the marketplace Ets...