Last week, Target Corporation announced that its stores would be eliminating gender-based signs for their bedding and toy sections because of customer complaints that “raised important questions.”
At least some part of the complaints were stirred by a tweet that pointed out a store’s segregation of “Building Sets” and “Girls’ Building Sets” that went viral in June:
The move by Target, however, has been met with criticism from many online. Franklin Graham, the son of famed evangelist Billy Graham, for instance, wrote on his Facebook:
“I think Target may be forgetting who has made their stores strong. It’s not gender-neutral people out there—it’s working American families, fathers and mothers with boys and girls they love. What’s next? Are they going to try to make people believe that pink or blue baby showers are politically incorrect? I have news for them and for everyone else—God created two different genders.”
Much of the furor has played out on Target’s Facebook page, where upset customers have taken to publicly criticizing the company.
Enter self-described “troll” Mike Melgaard. Perhaps inspired by Ben Palmer and Nick Price’s “Customer Service” troll account, Melgaard went to work sarcastically replying to comments from angry customers on the company’s Facebook under the monikers “Ask ForHelp” and “Target Customer Service.” Melgaard was able to reply to about 50 comments before his fake account was finally shut down.
Check out some of his most hilarious replies below:
