Shortly after taking office last month, the 47th President of the so-called United States signed executive orders attacking “woke gender ideology” (Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government) and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) (Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing), specifically attacking the entire transgender community and ordering an end to federal funding for programs that focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion, specifically targeting programs that support Black and Indigenous folks, the transgender community, the immigrant community, and women. While at the time of writing this article many of 47’s executive orders are being challenged through legal means, with judges questioning the constitutionality/legality of these orders, many federal agencies are pre-emptively complying by removing any mention of DEI from websites and funding opportunities, ordering an end to work on programs and projects that are considered DEI in focus, and compiling lists of programs and research projects that could be considered DEI in scope. Additionally, several corporations, who were not directly impacted by these executive orders, chose to end their DEI programs and roll back support for marginalized communities, of which they had previously championed, to presumably align with the current political regime.

Twin Cities Pride & Target 

Just days after these orders were signed, Target announced they would be ending their DEI programs, specifically the programs they implemented to increase representation and engagement of the Black community, as well as initiatives that sought to hire and promote women, People of Color, LGBTQ+ people, and veterans. Because of this move, Twin Cities Pride, a non-profit in Minneapolis that hosts the second largest Pride festival in Minnesota as well as other programs that benefit and uplift the LGBTQ+ community, declined Target’s $50,000 annual pride sponsorship and appealed to the community to raise funds to cover the loss. This action by Twin Cities Pride was well received. They raised more than $89,000 through crowd-funding, surpassing their goal of raising $50,000 in less than 24 hours. Not only did this tactic work to reinforce community support for Pride events through tangible and material support, but it also represented a successful role-reversal in which the Pride organization pulled funding from the corporate sponsor for not aligning with Pride values, a departure from traditional corporate influence, showcasing the power of our community.

Rainbow Capitalism 

Anti-diversity actions, especially in the context of anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric and threats to the rights we’ve fought for as a community, have reinvigorated ongoing conversations regarding rainbow capitalism (appropriation and profiting from the LGBTQ+ community/movements), rainbow-washing/pink-washing (superficial support for the LGBTQ+ community as a marketing tactic), and the place of corporate sponsorship in Pride celebrations. Pride hosting organizations will now need to contend with questions as to what impact(s) the current political atmosphere and economic uncertainties will have/have had on the future of Pride celebrations, how current celebrations are honoring the origins of Pride in actively protesting the political attacks our community continues to experience—specifically addressing the attacks on the transgender community, whether there is opportunity to create systems to hold organizations accountable to tangible (institutional values that uplift the LGBTQ+ community) and material support of the LGBTQ+ community beyond Pride month/sponsorships, as well as how to ensure that Pride celebrations are sustainable outside of funding from corporations/businesses/organizations that seek only to profit off of Pride month and do not tangibly and materially support our community.

Shallow Corporate Support 

While many in the LGBTQ+ community have pointed to rainbow capitalism and corporate support of the LGBTQ+ community as indicators of progress and greater acceptance of our community, others have been critical of the commodification of the LGBTQ+ community (rainbow-washing), noting that corporate support is shallow and more of a marketing scheme/money-making tactic than indicative of tangible support of our community. Many corporations that claim to give a portion of their Pride profits to LGBTQ+ organizations do not specify how much they will be donating or which organizations will benefit. And in recent years, corporations that have experienced right-wing/conservative backlash have scaled back their support of the LGBTQ+ community by hiding and/or eliminating their public facing Pride displays, choosing to appease a small-but-vocal group of haters instead of choosing to be steadfast in supporting and uplifting the LGBTQ+ community.

Broad support of our community is always welcome, and we would all love to see the businesses, corporations, and organizations that we work for, patronize, and otherwise support show visible and monetary support for the LGBTQ+ community, representation at Pride typically amounts to nothing more than selling rainbow goods and superficially inclusive services during the month of June, while abandoning our community the other 11 months of the year. But, commodification of our community is not support, it is exploitation. We need to demand more from those with money and power who claim to support our community, especially when they want visibility and recognition at our Pride events.

Corporate vs. Private Donations 

Perhaps the most significant barrier for Pride hosting organizations considering separating from corporate sponsorships is that corporate donations are generally larger than individual donations, as the tax breaks for charitable giving for businesses are generally more advantageous than for most individuals. Additionally, corporate sponsorships are usually sustained annually and are generally easy for a non-profit organization to obtain, sometimes merely requiring an organization to fill out a form online and provide proof of 501(c)3 status. And as many of the organizations that host Pride are non-profits, obtaining corporate sponsorships have a better cost-benefit ratio than the work that is required to put on fundraising events and/or long-term crowd-sourcing campaigns. Traditional fundraising means are usually more difficult to sustain and more costly to the organization as they must consider the costs of putting on the events (e.g., entertainment, equipment, room rental, advertising, etc.) as well as the costs associated with the time paid staff have to put into the fundraising events, which can also take away time spent on other important advocacy initiatives, such as programs to support trans people and housing insecurity in the community, and the costs associated with staff time spent organizing volunteer efforts which can be especially time-consuming when trying to find volunteer staff. However, these barriers should not be considered insurmountable as some corporations have reiterated their commitment to DEI initiatives, can be relied on for continued support, and have the opportunity to deepen their commitment to the LGBTQ+ community beyond Pride month. Additionally, traditional fundraising measures are still effective as well as other considerations for sustainable Pride celebrations.

Sustainability in Funding 

Alongside ideological concerns with corporate Pride sponsorships, Pride hosting organizations will need to consider how economic struggles may impact existing sponsorships and how to ensure sustainability in Pride celebrations while also ensuring that our celebrations are honoring the spirit and meaning of Pride. One potential consideration in the event that funding for Pride celebrations become scarce are for organizations and communities to consider holding smaller, grassroots celebrations, reminiscent of the first Pride protests and celebrations, that are well-coordinated and that can be sustained mostly through volunteer efforts and in-kind donations from local businesses. This might look like a smaller park celebration with a potluck picnic instead of a large festival, or a Pride protest instead of a traditional parade. Another potential solution may involve coordinating crowd-sourcing fundraising campaigns that can be sustained through volunteer efforts by relying on long-term volunteers. Pride hosting organizations can provide volunteers with fundraising toolkits, peer-to-peer fundraising opportunities, and other easy, low-cost incentives to support sustainable fundraising efforts. Additionally, organizations could consider teaming up with other non-profits in fundraising for Pride in a way that is mutually beneficial and shows solidarity in community with a commitment to collective liberation.

Year-Round Pride 

Pride hosting organizations can also consider requiring a commitment from all corporate Pride sponsors to not only give funds directly in support of Pride but to also commit to organizing fundraising directly through their organization outside of Pride month activities, in addition to committing volunteers to assist with the Pride event beyond representation at a sponsored booth and in a way that benefits the community (e.g. organizing a kids activity area, sponsoring a water-wagon/water distribution, giving away free food to attendees, etc.). Corporate sponsors must also be held to a commitment to support of LGBTQ+ employees, patrons, etc. by working with LGBTQ+ non-profits to assess their organizational support of our community and to address any short-comings with opportunities for improvement. There are a plethora of creative ways to move toward tangible, sustainable, material support of the LGBTQ+ community throughout the year and if these would-be sponsors are not truly tangibly and materially committed to our community and all the intersections then they cannot and should not have a physical, visible presence in our celebrations.

Aligning with Pride’s Origins 

Now is as good a time as ever for organizations that host Pride celebrations to reflect on how they can better align their events with the origins of Pride, especially considering the violent actions that have already been/continue to be waged against the transgender community as threats to our entire LGBTQ+ community and the intersections therein. We can demand better, and there’s no better time than now as we are reminded that the LGBTQ+ community cannot be free when any of us are being attacked, and to honor the transgender folks past and present who continue to fight for us all. And while change is intimidating, and it is disappointing to think that we may need to scale back from the large Pride celebrations we’ve become accustomed to, is the pomp and circumstance worth selling out our Pride roots—the reason that Pride celebrations exist in the first place—when our rights and well-being are actively under attack?

While change is hard and pushback is to be expected, our community is strong, resilient, and worth celebrating outside the bounds of capitalism and corporate influence. Our greatest Pride celebrations come in the form of resisting and protesting federal policies that seek to erase us. We’re still here, we’re still queer, and we will continue to fight with Pride for the liberation of all LGBTQ+ people everywhere.  

jilip (jill) nagler (ze/hir; they/them) is a community activist and organizer, a local musician, a muser, a bibliophile, and a cat enthusiast. Everything ze knows about justice they learned from Angela Davis, Audre Lorde, bell hooks and queer/trans folks fighting for our collective liberation.