By Siddharth Cavale
NEW YORK, Jan 26 (Reuters) – The incoming CEO of Minneapolis-based Target told employees on Monday that “the violence and loss of life is incredibly painful” after federal agents shot and killed another protestor in Minneapolis over the weekend.
“As someone who is raising a family here in the Twin Cities and as a leader of this hometown company, I want to acknowledge where we are,” said Michael Fiddelke, who becomes CEO on February 1, in a video address to staff.
“The violence and loss of life in our community is incredibly painful. What’s happening affects us not just as a company, but as people, as neighbors, friends and family members within Target,” he said in the video, the transcript of which was shared with Reuters.
Fiddelke did not specifically refer to the deaths of protestors Alex Pretti and Renee Good, who were shot and killed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents earlier this month.
Neither did Fiddelke mention President Donald Trump or announce any policy changes. In the address, he said the retailer was doing “everything we can to manage what’s in our control, always keeping the safety of our team and guests our top priority.”
Target and other major Minnesota corporations have been largely silent on immigration enforcement’s effects on the city, a midwestern stronghold for political progressives and a major corporate hub, due to the fear of retaliation or threats of boycotts.
The Trump administration has defended the operations, and has added more agents even as 69% of Americans in a recent Reuters poll say federal agents should minimize the harm to people during operations, even if arrests decline.
One high-profile ICE incident occurred at a Target store in the Minneapolis suburb of Richfield, where two U.S. citizens were detained. Target has faced protests after it was revealed that one arrestee was a 17-year-old employee, and separately for allowing ICE agents to use its parking lots and bathrooms.
But the relative silence of Twin Cities corporations ended on Sunday when more than 60 Minnesota-based CEOs, including leaders from Target, Best Buy and UnitedHealth signed an open letter urging officials to “immediately de-escalate tensions” in Minneapolis after Pretti’s killing. The letter did not mention the shootings or Trump.
(Reporting by Siddharth Cavale in New York; Editing by David Gaffen and Matthew Lewis)
