discussion Does Pride Month feel a lot more...hostile this year?

[Specter]

Every year Pride Month rolls around and there is (predictably) a lot of performative activism, as well as blatantly obvious attempts to pander to the LGBTQIA+ community - largely by corporations willing to profit off the aesthetic of support. Many people have expressed a lot of frustration with this, especially with the commodification of pride when it does not really even lead to material changes that better the lives of the community, and often is done by a company with a less-than-stellar track record when it comes to activism of any kind, let alone in the interests of the community.

 

With that said, this year it feels like the entire pretense has been dropped completely. It just feels like corporations have decided - for once - that cynical cash grabs are not even worth it, or the RW backlash. They have seemed to drop all the insincere pomp entirely, with many corporations deciding to limit their Pride celebration (Target, Starbucks) and so on. And we of course cannot sidestep the Dylan Mulvaney debacle...

 

This, paired with the volley of anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation coming from both the Imperial Core (USA, UK deciding to continuously harass trans people and frame them, and the rest of the community as pedos) AND Global South (banning of effeminate men in China, Ugandan death penalty, India not being able to pass same-sex marriage laws) makes it feel...particularly dark this year.

 

Do you agree? Vote.

[Gwendolyn]

In the UK, I’ve seen numerous pride things, companies have changed their logos for pride and local schools near me put up a pride flags. It’s been normal but sad for all Americans at the moment.

 

also I’m shocked we didn’t due to the trans backlash 

Edited June 13, 2023 by Gwendolyn

[Miichael]

Yeah but I saw this coming. Every civil rights movement and advancement always comes with a period of resistance and backlash in the following years. It's important that in the meantime we don't fall for their bait and let them win.

[JoJo]

Republicans got want they wanted when Roe v.Wade was overturned, so now they’re going after LGBT+ people to continue their culture war because they need a perpetually angry voter base. They won’t stop until trans people are banned from public life and Obergefell v. Hodges is overturned. 

[D.Va]

It does.

 

Back in 2016-2019, you could just feel in the air that things were changing for the better. That feeling totally disappeared since last year. 

[nadiamendell]

25 minutes ago, Miichael said:

Yeah but I saw this coming. Every civil rights movement and advancement always comes with a period of resistance and backlash in the following years. It's important that in the meantime we don't fall for their bait and let them win.

This. So many in our community became lazy and partied like everything was suddenly better after gay marriage was legalized. 

[Beyonnaise]

I felt way more comfortable being publicly gay in 2014-2019, even when we had tragedies like Pulse. It's remarkable how things have shifted. I feel a tad hesitant sometimes even bringing up my boyfriend in casual conversation at work or among strangers, even though I live in a liberal area. It feels like I'm inviting a conversation about political culture wars even though I'm just talking about my relationship like any straight person would. I can't imagine how it feels for trans people who just want to float under the radar.

[EtherealCat]

32 minutes ago, Gwendolyn said:

In the UK, I’ve seen numerous pride things, companies have changed their logos for pride and local schools near me put up a pride flags. It’s been normal but sad for all Americans at the moment.

 

also I’m shocked we didn’t due to the trans backlash 

americas doing it so we wont be far behind 

[Josh]

None of these companies ever supported us. They just wanted brownie points

[Raphy23]

Far right conservatives always pick someone/thing to attack. A few years ago it was BLM, with their "All Lives Matter" protests, then it was mask/vaccines, and this year it's us 2SLGBTQI+ 

 

How bored are these people? Maybe if they got jobs they would let people just be. 

Edited June 13, 2023 by Raphy23

[Bloodflowers.]

Visibility is a good thing, so I support corporate business showing gay agenda down homophobes throats

[Raphy23]

11 minutes ago, Beyonnaise said:

I felt way more comfortable being publicly gay in 2014-2019, even when we had tragedies like Pulse. It's remarkable how things have shifted. I feel a tad hesitant sometimes even bringing up my boyfriend in casual conversation at work or among strangers, even though I live in a liberal area. It feels like I'm inviting a conversation about political culture wars even though I'm just talking about my relationship like any straight person would. I can't imagine how it feels for trans people who just want to float under the radar.

[ugo]

These twitter accounts complaining about how corporations used us well now we got nothing and the atmosphere has gotten a lot worse. I can also see how a lot of popstars have stayed silent for this year because they don't want to face backlash....

[State of Grace.]

It felt worse last year for me. In fact, World Cup period felt x1000 worse than what I'm seeing currently.

[Illuminati]

It does feel like a shift has come, not so much here where it was never safe to be openly gay but in the US.

[imabadkid]

1 hour ago, Miichael said:

Yeah but I saw this coming. Every civil rights movement and advancement always comes with a period of resistance and backlash in the following years. It's important that in the meantime we don't fall for their bait and let them win.

Agreed tbh

[KillingYourCareer]

It's the first time in a few years Lady Gaga hasn't released anything new right before June, so I can see why it feels hostile.

[Terrielle]

It's always been hell for us here in North Africa. Because of the pride month pandering, people now know what a pride rainbow is and they've gotten incredibly aggressive with their homophobia. I miss us being under the radar here. Being gay is illegal either way, so I'd rather be ignored than talked about.

Edited June 13, 2023 by Terrielle
typo

[Cheers]

Brace yourselves because it's going to get worse for LGBT. Far worse.

[Cyanide]

I’ve been kind of relieved to see some of these corporations drop their BS, but I get what you all are saying about visibility. I hated how corporate and pinkwashed things were getting but maybe I should’ve just sat there and ate my food

[UnfairTop]

No

[WBTlove]

Just in the media discourse but the US right wing is on fire rn tbh.

This is the 1st year where I feel they got more power than the lgbt organizations.

[DamianSolo]

This Pride is definitely a lot more hostile and negative compared to how it was the past several years. Honestly, people complain about it, but I was looking for businesses to change to their rainbow logos. Pride is something I never really cared about, personally, but there are those who do take solace in it, and I was sad that businesses aren't showing support this year, whether it was ever since or otherwise.

[Headlock]

1 hour ago, UnfairTop said:

No

[Specter]

5 hours ago, Headlock said: