Corporate Political Pressure

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten sent a public letter Sunday urging new Target CEO Michael Fiddelke to "clearly state" that the company wants Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to leave Minneapolis, accusing the retailer of harmful "silence" after ICE and Border Patrol officers fatally shot Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Weingarten stressed that AFT‑affiliated pension funds, which collectively invest about $4 trillion and hold 6.8 million Target shares, give the union significant leverage and called Fiddelke’s response to the crisis a defining test of his leadership. Fiddelke, in a Monday statement outlining Target’s business priorities, did not address ICE by name, after previously joining more than 60 Minnesota CEOs in a generic January letter calling for "immediate de‑escalation" that avoided criticizing federal agents. ICE operations in Target parking lots, the detention of two Target employees at a Minneapolis store last month, and fresh rallies outside Target’s downtown headquarters and at 23 area stores are making the company a focal point for anti‑ICE activists who say major employers must take sides. Corporate‑governance experts note that, on social media and in investor circles, there is rising pressure on big brands headquartered in Minnesota to go beyond neutral calls for calm and explicitly confront Trump‑era enforcement tactics.