Bloomberg Gun Control Group Says Target Shut Down Its Protest On Sunday

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A Texas Target store is once again at the center of a gun rights fight.

The gun control group Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense, which is backed by former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, said Monday that its Texas chapter was told on Sunday to leave the parking lot outside a Target store in San Antonio, where it had been holding a “Stoller Jam” demonstration.

“We were told to leave because Target prohibits demonstrations due to its commitment to providing a ‘distraction-free’ shopping experience – yet we know that just days ago, gun extremists were openly carrying guns and demonstrating in the same place,” Jamie Adams, the head of the group’s Texas chapter said in a statement. “We have a question for Target: how are moms and their children openly carrying strollers and signs classified as a distraction while gun extremists openly carrying assault rifles are not? The time has come for Target to stand with moms and ensure the safety and security of our children.”

Target stores, particularly in Texas, have been a focus of both gun control and gun rights activists. Earlier this month, the gun rights group Open Carry Texas made a stop in the parking lot outside a Target in Irving, Texas. The two groups have been acting as foils for each other, and whereas Open Carry Texas’ earlier activities outside the Irving Target prompted angry statements from Moms Demand Action, Sunday’s incident was followed by a happy comment from the Open Carry Texas.

“Moms Demand Action asked to leave Target during their ‘protest,'” Open Carry Texas wrote in a Facebook post linking to a local news account. “No business likes a bully.”

While some chain restaurants have responded to Open Carry Texas’ demonstrations — and Moms Demand Action’s statements — by asking customers to leave their guns at home, Target has so far said that it will continue to follow local laws on the issue.

In a statement on Monday, Moms Demand Action said that its Virginia chapter was also asked to stop soliciting signatures for a petition during a “Stroller Jam” at a Richmond Target on Saturday.

Photo credit: KABB Fox News 29 San Antonio

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  1. Were they ‘gently counseling’? cuz SCOTUS says that’s okay (and yes, I know parking lot is private property, but it just demonstrates how skewed ‘justice’ has become in this burgeoning theocracy.)

  2. Avatar for whit whit says:

    If my abortion clinic has a private parking lot, can I keep the creeps out of it? If someone feels threatened by the, well, threats (e.g. “You’re going to hell!”) of the thugs on the sidewalk outside, can she shoot them in states where subjective apprehension makes that a legal response? Can we show up in the “churches” of the thugs and lecture them on the evil they embody? The “prolifers” are in thrall to Evil. The true God is a God of Freedom, who wishes us to limit our numbers so as not to overwhelm Her Creation. We are called to witness for Her.

  3. Avatar for Libs Libs says:

    Both sides of the issue should just leave businesses out of the quarrel. I’m not going to Target to be harassed by either side.

  4. Time to take the petition against Target on-line!

  5. Americans have more power than they realize if they really care to
    use it. If all the moms just stopped shopping at Target, how long do
    think it would take for them to change their policy? NOT LONG. Same
    for Hobby Lobby. These people care far more for the almighty
    dollar than they do for gun rights or birth control. If you want their
    attention, forget demonstrations, just treat them as they no longer
    exist.

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