“Abprallen,” a designer whose works are being sold by the Target retail chain, has created Satanic influenced designs, writing of one, “Satan loves you,” and marketing a “trans witches for abortion” pin, according to the designer’s own Instagram page. “We’ll hang with Satan instead,” the designer wrote in another Instagram post.
That’s the latest controversy to hit the Internet over Target’s “Pride” line of clothing and other items. The Abprallen designs sold by Target are not the Satanic influenced ones. However, the designer’s Instagram page is filled with references to Satan, using the following hashtags on a post about a design called “Satan respects pronouns”: “lgbt #lgbtq #lgbtqia #satanism #satanic #satanictemple #churchofsatan #pastelgoth #gothic #queer #transisbeautiful #nonbinary #enby #oneofthem #witchesofinstagram.”
Wisconsin education activist Scarlett Johnson sent the topic viral with a series of tweets. The Washington Examiner has also reported on the topic. According to the Examiner, Target has declined to comment, and the brand has been collaborating with Abprallen for about a year.
Why did @target hire a Satanist to design pieces for their recent "Pride" clothing line?
WTF👉🏽"Satan loves you and respects who you are… LGBTQIA+ people are so often referred to as being a product of Satan or going against God's will, so fine. We'll hang with Satan instead." pic.twitter.com/FLsNZNzHNa
— Scarlett Johnson (@scarlett4kids) May 20, 2023
So @target hired an artist/activist in the trans-satanist movement…just learned that was a thing🤷🏽♀️😱 pic.twitter.com/ttSOFT1yss
— Scarlett Johnson (@scarlett4kids) May 21, 2023
Target’s website currently lists three items for sale that were designed by “Abprallen.” They are a Pride “We Belong Everywhere” messenger bag; a Pride “Too Queer for Here” messenger bag; and a Pride “Cure Transphobia” sweatshirt.
Abprallen wrote on Instagram, “This has been so hard to keep quiet but I can now proudly announce that you can buy Abprallen in US Targets! Part one of the range includes a messenger bag, a tote, and a sweatshirt!”
As noted, the Target-marketed designs aren’t satanic, but other designs by Abprallen mention Satan or Lucifer.
For example, one design on Abprallen’s Instagram page says, “Satan respects pronouns.” (Another says “heteronormativity is a plague.”)
View this post on Instagram
On March 28, Abprallen shared the Satan respects pronouns design on Instagram and wrote:
“One of my favourite and most popular designs, and the one that gave Abprallen its proper footing and direction. Coming up with this phrase really helped make Abprallen what it is today. Satan loves you and respects who you are; you’re important and valuable in this world and you deserve to treat yourself with love and respect. LGBT+ people are so often referred to as being a product of Satan or going against God’s will, so fine. We’ll hang with Satan instead. Satanists don’t actually believe in Satan, he is merely used as a symbol of passion, pride, and liberty. He means to you what you need him to mean. So for me, Satan is hope, compassion, equality, and love. So, naturally, Satan respects pronouns. He loves all LGBT+ people. I went with a variation of Baphomet for this design, a deity who themself is a mixture of genders, beings, ideas, and existences. They reject binary stereotypes and expectations. Perfect.”
In another post sharing the same design, Anprallen wrote, “Satan loves you and respects who you are; you’re important and valuable in this world and you deserve to treat yourself with love and respect. LGBT+ people are so often referred to as being a product of Satan or going against God’s will, so fine. We’ll hang with Satan instead. Satanists don’t actually believe in Satan, he is merely used as a symbol of passion, pride, and liberty. He means to you what you need him to mean. So for me, Satan is hope, compassion, equality, and love. So, naturally, Satan respects pronouns. He loves all LGBT+ people. I went with a variation of Baphomet for this design, a deity who themself is a mixture of genders, beings, ideas, and existences. They reject binary stereotypes and expectations. Perfect.”
View this post on Instagram
On Instagram, Abprallen has written things like, “Biblically accurate angel, but make it trans. All angels are trans, I’ve made a pin so it’s now canonical and factual.” A pin Abprallen designed mentions “Lucifer” along with “ghosts, bats, transsexuals.” Another design reads, “Pup tarts. Frosted sweet creme.”
Another Abprallen design on Instagram advertises a “Satanic flea market” in London called an “anti Christmas fayre.”
“It’s almost time for London’s (the world’s!?) greatest Christmas market! Head to the gloriously huge @electrowerkz_ this Sunday for @satanicfleamarket’s incredible AntiChristmas Fayre. With over 60 stalls (mine included!) you’re bound to find something for everyone on your list – especially for yourself,” the post says.
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Who is Abprallen? The designer’s website says the designer is a “gay trans man” based in London. “I juxtapose it with imagery of skulls and spooky things – an interest of mine since I was a child. There’s something magical about the unknown, the frightening, and the mystical which is why I so frequently feature these themes in my art,” the designer wrote. “I share my home with three cats, am fond of country, folk, and hip hop music, love arthouse films, museums, galleries, forests, cemeteries, getting lost, and staying home.”
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Abprallen wrote on Instagram, “Being able to sell my stuff in Target stores is incredibly exciting, knowing that people are seeing it without (necessarily)explicitly seeking LGBT-related stuff is wonderful, and I’m especially happy at the thought that young closeted people will see it, and I hope that in some way they’ll feel a bit more comfortable in themselves, as we all deserve to feel. You can get the sweatshirt and the bags on the Target website or in stores.”
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Abprallen wrote, “Taking potions, lotions, pills, having your body altered under the knife or with injections, cutting or growing your hair, and choosing to adjust the very makeup of what makes your body is witchcraft and alchemy, and that’s an incredible achievement – people of old would have killed for that power (quite literally actually, but less on that).”