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By Hugh Cameron
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Target employees are pressing their company to take "urgent action" in response to ongoing immigration enforcement activities in Minnesota.
In a letter seen and published by Business Insider, hundreds of workers urged the big-box retail chain to issue a public statement calling for an end to the surge, and said the company should bar U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from its stores and parking lots.
Newsweek has contacted Target via email for comment.
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Why It Matters
Target has over the past year become deeply entangled in fractious political issues—its early-2025 DEI rollback sparking several rounds of boycotts—and the recent actions of federal agents, including at its stores, are again prompting demands for the company to take a firmer political stance against the administration's agenda.
The Minneapolis-headquartered company was among dozens of business that signed a recent letter warning that ICE’s actions had sown "widespread disruption" and called on "state, local and federal officials to work together to find real solutions." However, as the workers' letter demonstrates, this response may be insufficient to stave off growing anger and demands for action.
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What To Know
In the letter, dated January 23 and signed by over 275 workers, Target employees said the company’s "previous acts," including retracting certain DEI policy commitments and its $1 million contribution to Donald Trump’s inauguration fund, had "left many rightfully concerned for its integrity."
The letter went on to state that "continued silence" from leadership on the current actions of ICE in Minnesota "puts all of us at risk of more harm in our workplaces and represents a moral failure to protect those in our community."
Earlier this month, local officials said that ICE agents had "aggressively and violently" detained two Target employees—both U.S. citizens—at a store in Richfield. Footage of the incident later emerged, prompting protests and calls for Target to prohibit agents from operating at its locations and parking lots. Demonstrators have staged sit-in protests at Target outlets in the Twin Cities in recent days. During one, participants can be heard chanting: "Something about this isn’t right—why does Target work for ICE?"
In an internal memo obtained by Bloomberg and sent to employees on Thursday, Target’s Chief HR officer Melissa Kremer rejected the notion that Target cooperates with immigration enforcement agencies, and added that the company was "working to de-escalate where possible—while staying clear on what we need to safely operate our business and care for our team."
And in a video message from Michael Fiddelke on Monday, the Chief Operating Officer and incoming CEO called the violence in Minnesota "incredibly painful" but neglected to specifically mention ICE or endorse any particular policy changes.
"I know it’s weighing heavily on many of you across the country, as it is with me," Fiddelke said, according to a transcript published by CNBC. "What’s happening affects us not just as a company, but as people, as neighbors, friends and family members within Target."
Fiddelke was one of over 60 leaders of businesses and Minnesota-based organizations who signed an open letter noting the "widespread disruption and tragic loss of life" that had arisen from "Operation Metro Surge."
But the letter from Target employees has outlined more concrete steps it hopes the company takes in light of recent events, including a public statement urging an "immediate end" to the operation, barring agents from "stores, properties, and parking lots," and for Target to "cut current and future funding…to the current administration and any causes that support ICE."
And PR experts tell Newsweek the worst strategy for Target would be to attempt to sit on the sidelines of the situation.
“This is a historically charged moment, and how Target responds now will shape its reputation with employees and consumers for the long term,” said Ramsey Poston, president of the strategic communications firm Tuckahoe Strategies. “To this end, Target is in need of a defensible position—and a bit of humanity—that shows it understands the seriousness of this moment and is meaningfully supporting its employees.”
"Employees tend to expect companies to recognize when a moment carries real fear, historical weight, and long-term consequences—and to lead accordingly," he told Newsweek, adding that the company could start by providing clear guidance on what agencies can lawfully do on Target property, thoroughly reviewing all evidence related to enforcement actions at its stores and offering counselling and legal-information resources to employees.
Samantha DiGennaro, founder and CEO of DiGennaro Communications, likewise said that, “in highly charged situations, what matters most is whether employees feel heard and have trusted internal channels to raise concerns.”
“Employees aren’t solely an internal audience; they shape how a company shows up for its customers and/or clients,” she said. “When teams feel respected and heard they’re far more likely to remain committed to delivering for the people the business serves.”
What People Are Saying
Incoming CEO Michael Fiddelke, in a video message to staff on Monday, said: "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. The violence and loss of life in our community is incredibly painful."
Target employees, in their letter to management, wrote: "In the face of this tyranny, continued silence from our leaders will never make us safer, as already evidenced by ICE's kidnapping and assault of two Target Richfield employees who were both minors and citizens. Target's continued inaction in the face of the current administration puts all of us at risk of more harm in our workplaces and represents a moral failure to protect those in our community."
Samantha DiGennaro, founder and CEO of DiGennaro Communications, told Newsweek: “Companies don’t need to wade into contentious debates to be clear about commitments to employee safety, dignity, and inclusion but those commitments must be reinforced through visible actions. Without a sense of genuine listening and internal alignment, efforts to ‘stay out of it’ often backfire, prolonging the issue rather than containing it. That tactic ultimately erodes trust both inside the organization and with customers.”
What Happens Next
Following phone calls with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey on Monday, President Trump said that border czar Tom Homan would be dispatched to the state to head up immigration enforcement efforts.
Amid mounting opposition to the surge from Democrats and a handful of Republicans, Frey said that the administration is intent on reducing the number of agents in Minnesota from Tuesday, while Walz said that the president had agreed to consider this change during their call.
Update 1/28/26, 8:39 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comments from Samantha DiGennaro and Ramsey Poston.
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