By Hailey Locke
Pride 2019: How Attempts to ‘Show Support’ Provided Little Support
2019 was a year like no other, and Pride 2019 was no exception. In 2019, shows of support to the LGBTQ+ community for Pride month from corporations exploded in popularity. Hundreds of big name brands ‘came out’ in support of the LGBTQ+ community, and also came out with thousands of Pride themed, rainbow covered products available for purchase exclusively in the month of June. Products varied from alcohol and heart shaped pizzas, to shoes and personal care products.
Cool, right? Corporations showing their support for a community that has been excluded and ostracized from mainstream society for centuries sounds great.
Sure, except these attempts to show support, provided little support for the community. Rather, most of these attempts provided comic relief and little else- I’ll admit, the rainbow Listerine bottle did get me good.
However, in a world where homosexuality is still criminalized in over 70 countries, where our own government refuses to allows transgender individuals to join the military simply because they are trans, where there are still parts of the country where you will be beaten for holding hands with a person of the same sex, you begin to realize that these Pride efforts offer very little to be proud about.
You Need to Know Our History In Order to Understand This
To understand the influence and effects of corporate pride campaigns, we first must look at the history of the LGBTQ+ community. With any oppressed group, it is important to understand the community’s history, as well as its history of oppression in order to better understand where we are today.
Contrary to modern belief, LGBTQ+ history starts hundreds of years before the Stonewall in 1969. Little is written about or discussed in historical circles, but the earliest documentation of gay individuals dates back to the 1600’s, where homosexual relationships and acts were then called sodomy- an act punishable by execution.
Further on in the 1800’s, homosexuality is still a criminal offense and highly unacceptable, and we move into the 1900’s with no legal protection, no representation, and no rights for the LGBTQ+ community.
In the 1940’s, a movement led by President Truman and President Eisenhower seeked to eliminate the presence of gays and lesbians with the military and federal government, creating a witch hunt that would create a lasting impact and stigma for years to follow.
Stonewall hit in 1969, and lesbian feminism and womanism get their start a few years after. Coinciding with the second wave of feminism, the presence of gays and lesbians in the United States became more acceptable, more representative, until the AIDS crisis and subsequent lack of action from the United States government, (headed by Ronald Reagan at this time) hit in the 1980’s and early 1990’s, resulting in a resurrgence of homophobic and anti-LGBTQ+ messaging, laws, and oppression.
President Clinton then signed the Defense of Marriage act in 1996, denying federal benefits to same sex spouses and creating a loophole where states could deny the validity of same sex marriages performed in other states. Despite this effort, legalized same sex marriage slowly made its way through the United States, with it being made legal nationwide in 2015.
Presently in 2020, the LGBTQ+ community faces many issues still, including military bans against transgender individuals, the general oppression of transgender individuals, and a lack of equal, realistic, representation of the LGBTQ+ community both in the media and in our society.
Thus, annual Pride parades are celebrated across the country annually to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community, acknowledge the individuals we’ve lost, and share ideas and hopes about the future. Pride is a political act, an act of rebellion against the systems that discriminated, oppressed, and sought the expungance of those who were different from the ‘norm’.
Or, that was the intent.
Corporate Support or Corporate Takeover?
A turning point began to take place shortly after same sex marriage was recognized nationwide, and it is one that did not come without backlash. Due to the fact that same sex couples, marriage, and gays and lesbians became more socially accepted after the monumental decision, it became safe- and profitable- for corporations to run Pride themed advertisements, sell rainbow products, and have sponsored floats and events in honor of Pride and Pride month.
This reached a peak in 2019, when Pride became a hot topic- not for its celebratory aspect, but its lack of authenticity due to capitalist takeover.
However, before critiquing, it is important to acknowledge the positive effects this change in Pride has had upon others.
For children, this representation and corporate influence has normalized the LGBTQ+ community. Children now understand the concepts of gender and sexuality better than many adults do, in part thanks to companies like Target, but also thanks to television shows such as Steven Universe.
Moreover, the presence of corporations at Pride as well as the mass production of Pride themed advertisements and products has given us a reminder of how far we have collectively come. Gone are the days of sodomy charges, of witch hunts created to out and remove gays and lesbians from their positions in the military and federal government, the days where entire communities of people were forced to live in seceret, leading double lives.
This is true for people such as Brent Miller, a 42 year old gay man, who says that he rarely saw positive representation of gay people as he was growing up, and that “Everything that I saw was negative reinforcement of what it meant to be gay” (Yue, 2019).
Isn’t Positive Representation What We Need?
Yes, but…
Despite the positive benefits corporate involvement in Pride brings, the influx of business and commercialism into Pride has brought about a slew of issues and concerns, one of which is that Pride is no longer affordable to attend for many LGBTQ+ individuals.
Previously free events now charge upwards of $30 or more for a single ticket, with some performances costing more than $100 to attend. Additionally, costs of travel, food and drink while attending, the rainbow attire and accessories, merchandise and other costs associated with Pride festivals or concerts have made Pride inaccessible to individuals who need the community and resources attached to it most.
John Paul Brammer raises the question, “So as the celebration marches onward to ticketed festivities, it’s worth asking: Who can afford to be proud?” (Brammer, 2019).
In addition to rising costs of attending Pride, many have also raised concern of corporations’ involvement in the commercialization of Pride. Within the past year many major corporations including Smirnoff, Adidas, Citibank, Forever 21, T-Mobile, Vans, Wells Fargo, Listerine, and Budlight have turned profit by selling rainbow products, participating in Pride marches, and invading a community oriented space by “using that chunk of time, street presence, and screen presence to advertise their brand” (Kumar, 2019), instead of contributing to Pride in a more meaningful way.
While positive attention is always good, some people want to see real efforts being made by corporations, rather than an advertisement or a rainbow shirt. Logan Bean, 22, raises this point, and says that “Many of them [corporations] aren’t inclusive year round and just put rainbow products in their line and call it pride without donating a single cent to LGBTQ+ charities,” (Yue, 2019).
Moreover, some argue that “Celebrating Pride month is giving to queer not selling to queer. Creating products with rainbows on it for queer and trans people to buy isn’t celebrating pride month” (Yue, 2019), and that corporations should treat representation as normal and a regular protocol, rather than an “an annual event, holiday, or a marketing strategy” (Yue, 2019).
Corporate involvement in Pride also raises moral questions about the ethics of corporate involvement, including the production of the products that are sold by such corporations. Garment workers experience heavily exploitative working conditions, including the threatening, taunting, and humiliating done at the hands of factory managers. These conditions are even harsher for queer garment workers, and a garment worker can even be fired upon the suspicion that they themselves may be queer (DeLaurentis, 2019).
So what can we do?
This upcoming Pride season, it is important to be aware of the actions of corporations, as well as the impacts their actions have on the LGBTQ+ community and the world as a whole. Purchasing power is the people’s power, and it’s up to us to hold corporations to a standard that ensures ethical and responsible behavior from such corporations. Some questions to ask yourself before purchasing pride gear from major brand names are: what is the brand’s/corporation’s intent with the selling of the product? Does your purchasing of the product contribute to any major LGBTQ+ organizations? Does the purchasing of the product do anything to better you, your community, or anything at all? Will you continue to use the product for years to come, or will you throw it away after Pride is over and never think about it again?
Another step is to try to find LGBTQ+ owned businesses, brands, and companies to support, such as Rebirth Garments, Erdos Ko, Peau De Loup, Pumkinfish, and Bianca Designs. Supporting an LGBTQ+ company by purchasing from them ensures that your money is benefiting someone or something within the community, and takes away the mystery surrounding ethical concerns.
References
Brammer, J. P. (2019, June 20). Priced Out. Washingtonpost.com. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/opinions/pride-for-sale/
Byard, E. (1997). Out of the Past: 400 Years of Lesbian and Gay History in America. PBS.org. Retrieved from https://www.gsafewi.org/wp-content/uploads/US-LGBT-Timeline-UPDATED.pdf
DeLaurentis, V. (2019, June 20). Woven In. Washingtonpost.com Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2019/opinions/pride-for-sale/
Kumar, N. (2019, June 26). Pride 2019: The Double-Edged Sword of Corporate, Commercialized Pride. Them.us. Retrieved from https://www.them.us/story/corporate-pride
Rorech, M. (2019, June 14). 20 LGBTQ-owned businesses to support. Reviewed.com https://www.reviewed.com/home-outdoors/features/20-lgbtq-owned-businesses-to-shop-and-show-your-supportYue, F. (2019, June 28). Corporate America gets on the Pride parade, and it’s appreciated, but also complicated. USAToday.com. Retrieved from https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2019/06/28/pride-marketing-benefits-lgbtq-community-corporate-america/1511433001/