NEW YORK CITY— City officials urged residents to boycott Target at a rally Tuesday, after reports of federal immigration agents using a parking lot at the retailer's Marble Hill store as a staging area.
Oscar Belgal, 28, had his 5-year-old son in the back seat of his car when at least one officer fired seven rounds into thevehicle, according to the New York Police Department.
A senior Immigration and Customs Enforcement official defended the shooting, saying Belgal had attempted to weaponize his vehicle.
Council Member Pierina Sanchez and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams joined the rally outside the Marble Hill store, urging shoppers to withhold their business until Target addresses the reports, Gothamist reported.
"Target has been silent," Sanchez said at the rally. "If you can take our money, you should be able to stand up and protect us, anduntil you do, boycott Target."
City Comptroller Mark Levine, who oversees the City's pension investments, wrote to Target's board demanding an independent review of the company's handling of the situation.
The review should examine "the human rights risk, the legal risk, and the business risk of your failure to manage this situation better," Levine wrote.
The rally was organized by Until Freedom, an advocacy group whose co-founder, Tamika Mallory, has called for a Target boycott since the company rolled back its diversity, equity and inclusion programs in January 2025.
Target has said it has no formal agreement with federal immigration authorities.
Company spokesperson Lauren Frank previously told Gothamist the retailer has "no agreement in place with ICE or anyother immigration enforcement agencies."
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