Pastor Jamal Bryant is apologizing to the public after prematurely ending his boycott of Target. Bryant, who announced earlier this week that he was no longer taking part in the nationwide boycott, attempted to clarify his comments during the latest episode of his Let’s Be Clear podcast, released Friday.
What did Jamal Bryant say about his Target boycott?
As people across the country decided to boycott Target over the retailer’s decision to remove some diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, Bryant announced earlier this year that he would participate during the season of Lent as a 40-day fast from the retailer, Hollywood Unlocked reported. The pastor encouraged fellow Christians to join him by boycotting Target and other companies that do not support DEI initiatives.
On Tuesday, however, Bryant said on Instagram that his Target fast had ended.
“It’s been a journey. At noon we will be giving an update on the @targetfast40 ….This has been the most sustained effective boycott by our people since the Montgomery bus boycott,” he wrote.
Bryant later faced backlash from critics who accused him of ending the fast too soon. In his clarification, Bryant said his Target fast should not be confused with the broader nationwide boycott that remains ongoing.
“This is an amalgamation of several different movements that are taking place, but the Target Fast entity, which is the faith-based initiative, is claiming victory,” Bryant said, per Capital B News.
During the 40-day fast, Bryant said his group’s demands for Target included reimagining DEI efforts, addressing the inclusion of historically Black colleges and universities, funding Black banks and honoring “the commitment of $2 billion for George Floyd that was pledged after his murder.”
“300,000 of you signed up at ‘Target Fast’ and said we’re going to be a part of this movement for 40 days,” Bryant said on his podcast, per Hollywood Unlocked. “Forty days came and gone, and yet you stuck in there. You held to the commitment, you didn’t waver, you kept driving, and you didn’t go in. I want to take a moment and personally thank you. We’ve had an amazing impact, this generation has, on a Fortune 500 company that so many people thought was too big to fail.”
Bryant also emphasized that he is not encouraging anyone to end the broader boycott.
“What I did yesterday was report what it is that we’ve asked for,” he said. “I’ve not made to the community any updates as to what has taken place. So as a consequence, I felt it my responsibility to share where it is that we are and my satisfaction or dissatisfaction with it. But I never encouraged people to go back in Target or to start shopping there.”
Bryant said he spoke with Target CEO Brian Fiddelke in February and described the meeting as having “a completely different temperament” compared to conversations with the company’s previous leadership.
“[Fiddelke] was open to the conversation and took ownership [of] the missteps that Target has made,” Bryant said, per Capital B News. “[Fiddelke] is looking forward to building a relationship and even open [to] us holding accountability over the next two years.”
The Atlanta pastor also addressed accusations that he had received payments from the company.
“I have not been compensated by Target. None of my colleagues or comrades have received a dime from Target,” he said, per The Grio. “The church that I pastor has not received anything. No 501c3, no friends of mine have received anything from Target. Whenever we met, we bought our own plane tickets and hotels, and we were never even fed. We are grateful that we can stand before you with clean hands and a pure heart to say in the words of Hosea Williams that we’re unbought and we’re unbossed.”
Which groups started the Target boycott?
The Target boycott began taking shape in 2025 with leadership from Minneapolis civil rights leader Dr. Nekima Levy Armstrong and Black Lives Matter Minnesota co-founder Monique Cullars-Doty, along with several other activists. Bryant acknowledged their leadership while clarifying his role in the movement.
“I have heralded out loud the remarkable leadership of Attorney Nekima, Representative Nina [Turner], and Sister Soldier Tamika Mallory,” he said. “I think that they are incredible leaders, and I don’t want history to record that I tried to stand in the way of the leadership of warrior women. I absolutely tip my hat to them for their innovation, for their courage, for their passion and their fire.”
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