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When dangerous legislation is introduced, or when people die, these companies - and their money - are nowhere to be found.”
“And, like seasonal allergies, this interest in LGBTQ+ issues fades by late summer. “The success of a rainbow campaign is not measured by the progress it affects, but by the profit it yields,” they continued. Is your identity marketable enough to exploit? If not, can it be reduced to something that is?” they asked recently. “Pride month gives corporations the delicious opportunity to disguise their capitalism as activism when else is blatant exploitation rewarded with praise? An abundance of colorful products might foster the illusion of acceptance, but this support is conditional. On the topic of rainbow capitalism, Medusa - a non-binary musician and LGBTQ advocate based in New York - has quite a bit to say. Wal-Mart sells Pride merchandise, but was sued in 2015 for anti-gay discrimination by a couple who had fallen afoul of the company’s pre-2014 policy of denying benefits to same-sex couples (unless required by state law.) And now? The corporations that actively lobbied against marriage equality are slapping a rainbow on their products and claiming to support the queer community with a patronizing “Yaaaas Kween”.ĪT&T, for instance, wants you to celebrate Pride with them and sponsors the Trevor Project, a queer suicide prevention initiative, all while donating money to politicians that describe gay marriage as a “ breakdown of the family.” The Salvation Army may offer shelter to those in need and affordable thrifted clothing, but it also promotes a faith-based lifestyle, calling same-sex relationships sinful, and has a long history of anti-queer allegations against it. From the Stonewall riots, to anti-gay financial lobbying, to Reagan’s failure to protect gay communities during the AIDS crisis, queer people have been under threat for years. And the journey to where we are now wasn’t easy. It is easy to forget, in the wake of corporate support and rainbow flags everywhere, that gay marriage was only nationally legalized in the United States in 2015, six short years ago. Happy Pride Month! June is intended to be a beautiful celebration of queer life and liberation, of all the labor it took to make the progress we now take for granted.