The public has taken to social media to both praise and criticise Target for its Back to School catalogue, which features a diverse range of models including children with disabilities and from various cultural backgrounds.
Ahmed 'Shonuff' M tweeted "@Targetaus WOW Target. A Muslim model in your ad. Breaking barriers. This is very impressive. #nohate #EqualityForAll # weareallhuman
Target's Back to School catalogue featuring children with disabilities and cultural diversity. Source: Target
Erina-Lea Peters added: "@Kmart_Australia and @Targetaus taking real people as models to a new level. Love it! #realpeople #realmodels" while Sheena Punk wrote: "Bravo @Targetaus Showing diversity in your back2school catalogue."
Advocacy groups have also praised the move, including the Youth Disability Advocacy Services.
But there has also been some criticism.
On Target's Facebook page, Vettie Marr wrote: "I look forward to Target having a CHRISTIAN woman wearing a large CRUCIFIX as we wouldn't want Target discriminating and only promoting one religion would we?"
Sonia Stephenson chimed in: "Australia is 'multicultural', can we please see other sectors also represented in your advertising?" to which Target replied: "Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with us Sonia! We always aim to be inclusive with our advertising, whether it's in relation to age, gender, ethnicity or people with a disability."
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