‘The Canceling Begins’: Target Pulls Walsh’s ‘Johnny The Walrus,’ Amazon Removes From Top LGBT Spot | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's Note: This post appears here courtesy of the The Daily Wire. The author of this post is Amanda Prestigiacomo.

    Target's online website is no longer hosting Daily Wire podcast host and children's author Matt Walsh's "Johnny the Walrus," the cultural warrior said Friday.

    The Daily Wire has reached out to Target but did not receive a response by publication. We will update if one is offered.

    Amazon, too, predictably caved to pressure, removing the children's book from the top spot in the site's "LGBTQ+" category, following demands from LGBT activists for its removal.

    "The canceling begins," Walsh posted Friday. "Target has removed Johnny the Walrus from their website. No explanation has been given."

    In true Walsh fashion, the author added some commentary sure to drive his critics insane. "I am beginning to feel deeply marginalized and unsafe as an LGBT author and thought leader," he wrote. "Jussie Smollett is not the victim of an anti-gay hate crime but I am."

    Daily Wire editor emeritus Ben Shapiro stood up for Walsh, too. "Target's trans-walrusphobia is unconscionable," he mocked. "This intolerance and hatred against the LGTQW+ community must end. You can buy Matt's plea for tolerance and inclusion at http://johnnythewalrus.com. #StandWithMatt."

    "Johnny the Walrus" features a young boy named Johnny, who has a wild imagination. The child envisions himself as many things, including a walrus. His progressive mom knows her boy is a boy, but becomes pressured by her friends on social media to treat and "transition" her child to live his true identity as a walrus. Mom is faced with the choice of either protecting her son or pleasing her friends.

    Mere hours after the book was released on November 29, it hit number one on the Amazon Movers & Shakers list, and hours later sold out. (If you're looking to reserve copies, you can reserve them here; Daily Wire members, as usual, receive discounted pricing.)

    And then it became the top-selling book in the LGBTQ+ category at Amazon, prompting Walsh to respond thusly: "I now have the number one LGBT book in the country. Any further criticism of me or my book is now homophobic. Checkmate."

    Activists lost their minds and demanded "Johnny the Walrus" be pulled.

    Amazon, of course, quickly complied. In a statement sent to LGBTQ Nation, an Amazon spokesperson confirmed "Johnny the Walrus" had been removed from the LGBTQ+ category.

    "We have recategorized this title from LGBTQ+ to Political and Social Commentary, to better reflect the content," the spokesperson said. "While we understand that many may find this book objectionable, it does not violate our guidelines and remains available for sale."

    "Amazon has removed my bestselling LGBT children's book from their LGBT book list," Walsh alerted followers on Friday. "This is an unconscionable attack on gay rights and a horrific example of homophobia and gay erasure."

    "I'm the most attacked and persecuted LGBT author in America," the podcast host snarked, reacting to his critics.

    "This is gay erasure," he wrote in another tweet. "You are attacking the most important LGBT voice in modern American history. Shame on you."

    The Daily Wire is one of America's fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a member.