‘Satanist’ designer at center of Target boycott speaks out

A designer at the center of the calls to boycott Target who has been accused of being a “satanist” recently spoke out about the ongoing controversy.

U.K.-based designer, Erik Carnell, who owns the company Abprallen, announced on Instagram this month that he helped design several new items to promote the 2023 Pride season at Target, the popular retail store company.

Since his announcement, some conservative voices have accused Carnell of being a “satanist” since a small portion of his collection features a reference to Satan (like a pin that states, “Satan respects pronouns”), which he says was meant to be tongue-in-cheek, according to the Daily Dot. But none of these items were sold as a part of Target’s Pride Month collection.

Carnell says those who have called him out have “completely altered the facts to fit with the version they want … that’s gonna get clicks, that’s gonna get views.”

Over the past few days, Target has been at the center of a controversy with many conservatives calling for a boycott of the company for items related to their 2023 Pride collection. Additionally, some have criticized Target after claiming that the company was selling “tuck-friendly” swimsuits, which can be used by transgender women to conceal private areas if they have not had gender-affirming medical surgery.

Conservative commentator Matt Walsh said “tuck-friendly bathing suits for children” is worse than Bud Light, which also recently faced backlash for sending a commemorative can to transgender activist and influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

“What Target is doing is far worse than anything Bud Light did. They are selling chest binders and ‘tuck-friendly’ bathing suits for children,” Walsh said.

During his interview with the Daily Dot, Carnell explained that he did not design the “tuck-friendly” items.

Among the social media users who have called Carnell a “satanist” was Mercedes Schlapp, the host of CPAC who said, “All Christians and religious need to boycott Target. We need to send a message to these woke companies that choose evil as their marketing tactic. It’s just sick. Target Pride Month partner boasts about satanism: ‘Satan Respects Pronouns’.”

The conservative online magazine, The Federalist, also published a tweet about Target and Carnell saying “Target partnered with a Satan supporter who wants to ‘eradicate’ critics of transgenderism.”

Twitter user Scarlett Johnson wrote, “Why did @Target hire a Satanist to design pieces for their recent “Pride” clothing line?”

Despite the claims made by some, Carnell told the Daily Dot that he does not believe in satan.

“I don’t believe in the Bible…. It’s a metaphor,” Carnell told the Daily Dot.

Newsweek reached out to Target via email for comment.