Kari Lake slams companies’ LGBTQ+ marketing being “thrown in our faces”

Former Arizona GOP gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake has attacked companies that are promoting Pride Month by selling LGBTQ+ items, saying that the campaigns are being “thrown” into people’s faces.

“We are not going to sit by idly as this is thrown in our faces and thrown in our children’s faces,” Lake said while appearing on Newsmax’s talk show The Balance, which is hosted by Eric Bolling. “This is not an attack on gay men and women in this country but this whole push for transgenderism, coming at our kids in school, coming at them through culture, coming at them when we go to the Target store…. We’ll just shut it all down.”

Lake’s comments come as companies have received criticism over their association with LGBTQ+ rights during June, which is Pride Month. Bud Light and Anheuser-Busch, as well as Target, Kohl’s and The North Face, have been the targets of boycott calls.

In early April, Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender influencer and activist, posted a video on Instagram celebrating her transition to womanhood and showcased a customized Bud Light can she received from the beer brand. The video prompted a widespread backlash from conservatives who disagreed with the move and called for their followers to purchase other beer brands.

Brendan Whitworth, the CEO of Bud Light’s U.S. parent company, Anheuser-Busch, responded to the controversy in a statement, saying, “We never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people. We are in the business of bringing people together over a beer.”

The CEO of Belgian multinational Anheuser-Busch InBev, Michel Doukeris recently told investors the company is making a significant investment in Bud Light. “This was the result of one can. It was not made for production or sale to general public. It was one post, not a formal campaign or advertisement,” he said about the Mulvaney controversy.

As for Target, many conservatives have disagreed with the retailer’s decision to sell “tuck friendly” clothing items, which are worn by transgender women.

“Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior,” Target said in a statement following the criticism. “Our focus now is on moving forward with our continuing commitment to the LGBTQIA+ community and standing with them as we celebrate Pride Month and throughout the year.”

On Newsmax, Lake, who was defeated in her race for governor last fall but did not concede and filed an election lawsuit, was asked if she and other conservatives would consider going back to stores like Target or purchasing Bud Light again if they changed their stance on LGBTQ+ issues.

“The people I know who turned their back on Bud Light, they would rather die of thirst than take a sip of Bud Light,” said Lake, who may run for a U.S. Senate seat in Arizona.

Newsweek reached out to Lake via email for comment.