Halloween merchandise has become a major seasonal business for large retailers, with chains rolling out costumes weeks before October as families begin shopping early. That broader retail push narrowed abruptly for Minneapolis-based Target on Aug. 24, 2026, when the company removed a children’s clown costume after criticism that its design resembled racist blackface and minstrel caricatures. Target said the item should never have been sold and issued a public apology the same day.
Target removes the costume and issues a public apology
Target said on Aug. 24 that it pulled the “Kids’ Glows Under Blacklight Circus Clown Halloween Costume” from sale after backlash over the design and its presentation. In a statement published by the company, Target said, “we got this wrong,” called the costume offensive, and confirmed it was no longer available in its assortment. Associated Press and Reuters also reported that the retailer removed the item after criticism spread online.
Coverage by AP, ABC News and other outlets described the costume as an orange-and-black clown outfit paired with black gloves and a grinning dark face covering. News reports said the product images showed a Black child modeling the costume, a detail that intensified scrutiny once screenshots circulated on social media. The retailer did not publicly release sales figures or say how many units had been sold before the item was removed.
Target’s statement said the controversy was especially hurtful to its Black guests, team members and partners. The company also said it was examining how the costume cleared internal review and what changes would be needed to prevent a similar incident. As of this week, Target has not publicly outlined the results of that review or named the vendor tied to the product.
Because Target is headquartered in Minneapolis, the decision drew immediate attention in Minnesota as well as nationally. The company confirmed only that the costume was no longer available for sale, but it has not released a store-by-store breakdown showing whether the item had reached shelves in Minnesota locations before it was withdrawn. That leaves unanswered questions about how broadly the product was distributed inside the state.
What is confirmed is that the response came from Target’s corporate office in Minneapolis on Aug. 24. That matters locally because decisions on seasonal merchandising, brand standards and public statements typically flow through the company’s headquarters. For Minnesota shoppers, the practical effect is straightforward: the costume has been removed from Target’s assortment, including its public online offering, according to the company statement and national coverage.
The company has not released a comprehensive list of affected Minnesota stores, and it has not said whether customers who purchased the costume returned it before or after the apology. No state agency in Minnesota has announced any enforcement action tied to the product. At this stage, the known facts remain limited to the removal, the apology and the company’s internal review process.
The backlash centered on the costume’s resemblance to imagery long associated with blackface performance and minstrel shows, according to AP, Reuters and other national reports. Critics focused on the dark face covering, oversized smile and styling choices that they said echoed racist caricatures. Those concerns moved quickly from social media posts to mainstream coverage within a day, increasing pressure on the retailer to respond.
Target’s own explanation did not dispute that the costume was offensive. Instead, the company said removing it was a first step and stated that it was looking closely at how the product entered its assortment. That wording suggests the retailer is treating the episode as a merchandising and review failure, though the company has not yet described what safeguards may change.
For customers, the immediate expectation is that the costume will remain unavailable while Target completes its review. The company has not announced a replacement product, a recall notice, or a broader Halloween assortment change tied to this incident. The most concrete forward-looking statement so far is Target’s own: it is reviewing what happened and what needs to change to ensure it does not happen again.