At the time I sit down to write this column, we are halfway through Pride Month. For those who work in the community, we understand Pride is a year-long affair, but for most of the world the focus is on the month of June.
For decades now, my version of Pride Month kicks off with the first Saturday of June, Gay Day at Disney. Some have come to call it Red Shirt Pride Day as it is the day the LGBTQ+ community shows up to the Magic Kingdom wearing red shirts.
The purpose is and has always been that of visibility. A group of people wanted to show our community exists everywhere, and to demonstrate this they gathered en masse at the Happiest Place on Earth.
As the years passed and word of the event spread, attendance in the thousands grew to the tens of thousands. Soon promoters hosted events at hotels and venues to upwards of 150,000 LGBTQ+ tourists and their friends.
The crowds have dwindled some since the glory days of gay day at Disney. I can remember times when whole lines of rides were nearly entirely red shirts, with a spontaneous chorus of Disney tunes being belted out. Large groups of attendees began to coordinate creative shirts and traditions formed at the parade and Country Bear Jamboree.
Although those days are long gone, this year’s celebration left me a bit nostalgic. It reminded me of the earlier days of the once huge event. Walking through the park there was no singing but a simple nod of the head or a welcoming smile to those in red shirts. It was a sign that the tradition was strong and would endure.
We can’t lose sight of visibility. It was the rallying cry of Harvey Milk and it is as important today as it has ever been.
Our visibility, our fight for rights, equality and equity led to some amazing times. A world that not too long ago referred to the LGBTQ+ community as deviants began to celebrate LGBTQ+ people. We started to see gay Dorito’s, rainbowless Skittles and rainbows on logos everywhere. Corporate America was shelling out huge amounts of money to teach their employees about diversity, equity and inclusion.
Corporations, or the LGBTQ+ resource groups that represent them, were showing up in huge numbers to show support for us and celebrate with us. They were so visible in their support that a faction of our community launched a campaign to keep corporations out of Pride.
Then seemingly overnight, that support disappeared.
To me, there was a trifecta of events that led to this. First, Bud Light partnered with a trans influencer to promote their brand. There was a backlash from the conservative right which led to an unfortunate apology from the beer maker, making this a lose-lose situation that other corporations were paying attention to.
Second, the Walt Disney Company took a stand to defend the LGBTQ+ community over the commonly named “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” bill. Gov. Ron DeSantis’ response was a warning shot to any other corporation that would stand up for the rights of this marginalized community.
Finally, the Trump administration went to war against DEI initiatives. Fearing some kind of punishment, many corporations acquiesced.
The ripple effect has been noticeable. Many businesses at the core of diversity training are losing large portions of their business.
Watermark Out News is not immune to this fallout either. National advertising once topped $150,000 in annual revenue for our newspaper and this year we have seen just one national ad come our way, and that ad is running in this issue. Imagine how damaging a six-figure shift can be for a small business.
The National LGBTQ+ Media Association recently conducted a survey of LGBTQ+ consumers and their spending habits as it relates to the withdrawal of corporate support for our community. I encourage you to check out the results on p. 15 of this issue and I encourage you to use your wallet to support those that support you.
To the corporations that pulled support because they fear retaliation I say this: If you think you are scared, imagine how we feel. We need your support in good times and in bad times. I can’t help but wonder if your support was ever there or if you were just in it for the money.
For the remainder of this Pride season I encourage you to be visible. Whether it means you attend a protest and carry a sign or dance the night away at a Pride after party, it all matters. Let’s not turn to fighting each other as to who is championing the cause correctly. Everywhere our community gathers, we need to show up and remain visible.
Stay visible, stay strong and support each other.
