Bolobilly/Flickr
A friend of mine commented on Facebook that she “will not be shopping at Target any more,” bringing up a fascinating question about how much we know about the politics of the retailers we patronize.
Background: media outlets reported that Target donated to the Yes on Prop 8 campaign in California, which supports a ban on marriage rights for gays. However, a progressive political site debunked the claim, saying that Target employee donations to Prop 8 had mistakenly been reported as corporate donations. Target is still under fire for contributions to an anti-gay gubernatorial candidate in Minnesota. The company released a statement saying that it favors the candidate’s business platform, not his social positions. The debate is raging outside my circle of friends; there is even a Facebook group boycotting Target.
Regardless of how you feel about Prop 8 and the right of gays to marry, my friend’s decision to boycott Target made me think about how little I know about the politics of the retailers I shop at. An About.com story shares this list of prominent brands and their political affiliations.
Republican – Coca Cola, Wal-Mart, most oil companies, many U.S.-based airlines
Democrat - Apple, Starbucks, Ben & Jerry’s, Google, Yahoo, and MSN
An even better resource is GoodGuide.com, which lists the political campaign contributions of 153 major American brands, from Amazon to Wal-mart. The cool graphic below shows Republican leaning and Democrat leaning companies, how far each company leans, and the plethora of companies that play both fields. The latest data is from 2008, unfortunately. The site looked at contributions to federal candidates and party committees made “by company political action committees and individuals connected to the organization.”
Do you know which political party and/or candidates the corporations you patronize support?
August 16th, 2010 at 9:59 am
It would seem to go against the concept of being frugal if you start worrying about stuff like that. Shop like every dollar is going to Communist Red China, you won’t be far off the mark.
August 16th, 2010 at 10:12 am
Interesting political commentary for a bargain website.
Hence, I come here for bargain tips, not politics.
So..as I have searched throughout this site I am unable to find the ‘unsubscribe’ button. I might be overlooking it, so please unsubscribe me from your blog.
Thanks!
August 16th, 2010 at 10:35 am
I agree with J.D. – this is about frugality, not political afffiliations – every penny is going to China anyway!
August 16th, 2010 at 11:12 am
Great post. It wasn’t about politics per se, it was about paying attention to where your money is going. So I guess any posts on supporting your local farmer by frequenting the farmers market would be political too… Oh for shame! Jeez people. Just open your mind to information, it wasn’t a manifesto.
August 16th, 2010 at 11:23 am
Julie,
Kudos to you for posting this article! We all want, and need, to save money these days but it does come with an ethical burden.
It doesn’t matter which side of an issue you’re on or what political party you vote for – the fact IS that your choices on where you spend your money have far-reaching effects. Whether you want to know or prefer to bury your head in the sand, YOU contribute to worldwide effects on social policy, the environment, who ends up rich or poor.
Sometimes I continue spending with a company who’s politics I hate because it’s what I can afford or it’s convenient or it’s the only place to get that “thing” I must have. But I much prefer to know and hope that, in the future, I can shop more in line with my ethics. Thank you for sharing this info and for allowing us to have this discussion!
August 16th, 2010 at 11:43 am
Julie, you hit the nail right on the head!
August 16th, 2010 at 12:40 pm
If we’re going to recommend shopping choices based on politics, etc., let’s focus on encouraging everyone to get out and vote. The deplorably low turn-out numbers worry me far more than chain store contributions. Info about contributions can always be found on-line, if you really care to look them up!
August 16th, 2010 at 12:47 pm
A few of these comments make me laugh because the show you how intolerant people are these days to hearing about opinions that don’t jibe with their own. If they don’t agree with you they don’t just ignore it — they want to silence you. You know, like communists and fascists and dictators and other evil people.
People: If you don’t like a post, just don’t read it. Move on the next and get your panties out of you-know-what.
August 16th, 2010 at 12:48 pm
Saving money is very important, but not nearly as important as fighting for what is right.
To the little girls who whined that this post is not about saving money, if you want to be a doormat and let the scumbags walk all over you, destroy your country, and hurt your quality of living, then i hope you enjoy hell.
I have little money to spend, and yet i will happily spend more money if possible in order to do what’s right.
August 16th, 2010 at 1:02 pm
I’m sorry – in this economy saving money is very important – if you want to keep your home – my beliefs will always be my beliefs – I don’t need to be partisan about my shopping habits. If everybody knew what our government is doing to us and the farmers, you’d be growing all your own produce…it’s disgusting. I’m trying it now….so far squash and eggplant and tomatoes are what grows best out West..but I have to depend on the grocery store for other staples, and I go for the best price – if I didn’t, I’d be eating ketchup and spaghetti for the rest of my life.
August 16th, 2010 at 1:13 pm
Great comments and insight!
@EllieD You make a solid point – voting on election day may be more important than voting with dollars. Wonder what would happen if EVERYONE did both?
@Rebecca Quinn You summed it up perfectly! One thought that I had after reading your comment is that supporting your favorite causes with donations or volunteerism is a good way to counter the way you vote with dollars.
@Brandy Another excellent summary. I agree with you. To a certain extent, everything is political. But I will definitely be writing about the farmer’s market again!
@V Sorry to hear you want to unsubscribe. You can do so by clicking on the unsubscribe link in any Bargain Babe email update.
August 16th, 2010 at 1:22 pm
Gotta add, this is the most interesting post – on any site – I have read in a while.
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for this vital info!!!!
I did not know any of this about these companies, but had been wondering about it for some time. I can side with either political party depending on the issue at hand, so that makes it impossible to keep my money out of the wrong hands entirely. But I can be a smart shopper and at least try!
AT&T is noticeably sexist and anti-gay, so no big surprise to see them on the Republican list. Watch their commercials. The women in their comercials are worthless except as subservient baby-factories or hookers.
Ditto for Walmart and Target. I had long known Walmart was extremely sexist & anti-gay. Again, watch their commercials: filled with children (always at least one boy and one girl), one man, and one housewife. BARF!
I HAVE to shop at discount stores, but Walmart is so blatantly sexist that I guess I’ll have to go with Target until my finances improve. Or Costco!
Surprising to see Home Depot on the Republican side. Home Depot supports illegal aliens, and yet i thought Republicans were against this? Hmm….
Oh…the LA Times is also (mostly) right-wing, EXTREMELY sexist and has been for some time. I won’t even read them online.
August 16th, 2010 at 3:18 pm
Anytime politics comes into a conversation the stupid comments come out from both sides. NO party is perfect and NO party is completely right. Come on people this was just a post about being aware. Something we should ALL be! Chrystal-I bet you consider yourself “openminded” too. Ha!
August 16th, 2010 at 3:38 pm
I think it is so absurd to discontinue being a bargain babe member for this very informative article. BB was only asking a question…why must people look so negatively at everything. There are other bargain sites I belong to on FB and Twitter that post things like “will you be watching the “CMT” awards tonight?,etc. Also, when coupons don’t apply to your area or if the offer is over, do you get offended that it was posted because it doesn’t apply to you or that you didn’t get to partake in it?? If you don’t like that particular post then don’t take the time to waste your time reading it then commenting so nastily against the publisher! Unsubscribing because of one post?? Really, come on people!
August 16th, 2010 at 3:43 pm
@ MgfromEP and Chrystal…very well stated! My thoughts exactly!
August 16th, 2010 at 4:13 pm
Interesting article~ Good info too; however, it will not change my buying habits. I can separate how I feel about a person/co from their politics (and I am conservative). I am not going to go marching in the streets to protest against someone or something.
August 16th, 2010 at 7:18 pm
Bargain Babe, I love the website, but really, this seems fraught with issues.
I know that Target was in trouble in MN for donating to a GROUP that donated to a conservative Republican candidate – they did NOT do a direct donation.
Especially with Target, I think they need to keep better track of their corporate political donations. While they don’t normally donate directly to candidates from what I’ve researched over the years, they certainly seem to be clueless when it comes to where their money goes after they donate it to political groups.
August 16th, 2010 at 7:48 pm
Always interesting to see the responses to a politically charged question. It amazes me. People are very passionate about their core beliefs. Julie, you do a great job and asked, I think, a very thought provoking question. Good work. I think it was appropriate.
August 16th, 2010 at 9:39 pm
Dang – I got info on Safeway, Albertsons, Whole Foods. But no info on Trader Joes.
Thanks for publishing this list Julie.
It definitely is going to influence my shopping choices.
August 17th, 2010 at 10:48 pm
One caveat to EllieD’s comment: It is not desirable that everyone go out and vote unless they have studied the issues! From EllieD’s many comments to this blog, I’m confident that was a given in her mind, too.
And one question: Who is “Julie”? Bargain Babe is likely too courteous to correct everyone, so I’ll do it. It’s “Julia.” I was surprised that so many people got it wrong.
August 18th, 2010 at 12:26 pm
You opened the can and out popped the worms! Ya should’a known better!
August 18th, 2010 at 12:58 pm
@Diane – Oops, I think I started the ‘Julie’ mistake. Totally a typo as I know Julia IRL and really do know her name! Sorry Julia!
This thread has been fabulous to follow – great to see the interaction and opinions! Hopefully we are all learning from it!
August 19th, 2010 at 2:26 am
@ Rebecca – What’s “IRL”? Hope I don’t feel too lame after you tell me (us)? Oh–”in real life”? I’m just guessing but that seems logical.
Back to the main topic: I feel strongly about a few political issues, but I probably feel more strongly about boycotting a store with good prices because of its political bent. So, for me, it would depend on what the issue is and how much more I would pay by going elsewhere.
August 19th, 2010 at 8:30 am
@Diane – yep, you guessed right! I should have spelled it out. The shortcuts come from texting and twitter where you have such a short space to say so much. My bad for assuming everyone would know.