Pride Parades Take a Hard Look at Themselves, and Sponsors

The Pride Parade, as America knew it, came to a crossroads in 2020. The pandemic shut down Pride celebrations that year, and kept many of them off the streets through 2021. Meanwhile, the broader conversations around racial equity that summer led to questions about who events like Pride represented: Were Black, Latinx and Asian members of the community welcome, seen and active within those celebrations? Were trans individuals given the space that their T in the LGBTQ+ chain would indicate? Did those with disabilities have both positions within the events and access to them? “We need Pride to be diverse, inclusive and visible,” said Dena Stanley, leader of Trans YOUnitning and co-organizer of Pittsburgh Pride Group, a coalition of LGBTQ+ community organizations from across the region. As Pride resumes normal marches and continues to grapple with representation and equity within LGBTQ+ communities, sponsors representing diverse business interests are multiplying. Some Pride parades nationwide have adapted and thrived, but those unable to do so have been halted in their tracks. How Skittles’ Pride Campaign Aims to Build a Legacy Beyond the Parade The march of time A combination of pandemic-pummeled finances and inclusion concerns—among other items—led to the dissolution of Pittsburgh’s longtime Pride group. This year’s parade, led by Pittsburgh native Billy Porter as grand marshal, is the second helmed by Pittsburgh Pride Group. Stanley noted that this is the first time in Pittsburgh history that Black trans and nonbinary leaders have been at the front of the city’s Pride efforts. The sponsorship mix is more diverse as well. While this year’s partners include Walmart, Tito’s Vodka and Dick’s Sporting Goods, community organizations such as 1Hood Media, AIDS Free Pittsburgh and the Alliance for Police Accountability also have chipped in. “We need to be heard, especially when so many in our community are under attack across the country and in our own backyard,” Stanley said. “We also need to celebrate ourselves in an open and inclusive way.” In Philadelphia, this year’s Pride events were the first under new management after their much-criticized organizer disbanded in 2021 amid accusations of racism and transphobia. Their new coordinator, PHL Pride Collective, re-centered events around Points of Unity calling for amplified Black, Hispanic, Asian and Indigenous LGBTQ+ voices and a broader collective of both participants and workers. The group also demanded more of its financial backers: prioritizing local organizations and eliminating brands from its spaces. “After community consensus that requested we center community members and de-prioritize corporations at Pride in Philadelphia, we did not have many of the [standard] visibility benefits traditional sponsors are known to receive,” said Dennis Maurice Dumpson, a member of the PHL Pride Collective finance committee. “Instead we worked with sponsors to be thoughtful about yearlong partnerships, recruitment for jobs within Black and brown, queer and trans Philadelphians, and support for meaningful programming in the future that deepens their relationships within queer communities beyond the performance of our festival.” That led to greater opportunities for groups including The Attic Youth Center, Hey Mama Lactation and Perinatal Care, Delaware Valley Legacy Fund and Big Brothers Big Sisters. But it didn’t scare off corporate donors: T-Mobile, Planet Fitness, Subaru, Fairfield Inn and Gilead were among this year’s investors. While the event didn’t retain all of its previous backers, Dumpson said companies were willing to give the new approach a try. “What’s most valuable about our fundraising stance is that it not only centers the people before businesses, it also gives corporations a way to move beyond performative patterns of community engagement and corporate social responsibility, which has been exciting— especially in our inaugural year under community-led leadership,” he said. Not every city’s Pride events have found a way forward. In Boston, for example, no Pride parade is scheduled for this year after organizer Boston Pride dissolved in 2021. Though other events like the Trans Resistance March in Franklin Park remain—notably “without the funding of corporate donors” from “the rainbow capitalist Pride of the past”—Boston’s Pride parade was criticized for ignoring trans and queer people of color while focusing on sponsorship. It’s unclear if the parade will return, but Boston Pride left little doubt that any future event will look far different than those of its 50-year past. “It is clear to us that our community needs and wants change without the involvement of Boston Pride,” the group said in its parting statement. “We have heard the concerns of the QTBIPOC community and others. We care too much to stand in the way.” A changing pace Before the pandemic, St. Petersburg’s Pride events drew roughly 267,000 visitors in 2019. That put it among the top 15 Pride celebrations in the United States and made it one of the 40 largest in the world. This year, with Florida’s lawmakers signing anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and targeting corporate opponents of those measures, St. Pete Pride president Tiffany Freisberg—who also co-owns digital and creative agency LionMaus Media—is expecting a crowd of 310,000 and a place in the nation’s top 10. “We're kind of affectionately coined the anti-Florida, like Austin in Texas,” Freisberg said. “My heterosexual neighbors are flying Pride flags and they have yard signs that say, ‘Say gay,’ so there’s been a groundswell of support within St. Pete.” Florida’s political climate has earned St. Pete Pride support from other corners as well. Performers including Todrick Hall, Pussy Riot, Carson Kressley and Sandra Bernhard pledged their support, with Freisberg receiving an email from an elderly woman from Ohio looking to attend Pussy Riot’s set. Even before that influx, however, St. Pete Pride partnered with Tampa General Hospital to diversify its events and create a bit more social distance amid Covid-19. Last year, St. Pete Pride eliminated its parade and hosted four weeks of events targeted to different demographics within the community. It retained both Family Day and its Juneteenth Celebration for this year’s installment, and is bringing back the parade, but finds itself with a glut of sponsors with this year’s partners including Raymond James, Bloomin’ Brands, GE, cannabis company Trulieve and online real estate firm Compass. “Brands that didn't align themselves historically with Pride or didn't really know how they fit—family-focused brands, for example—now had an in,” Freisberg said. “Their brand values now aligned with an LGBTQ organization because we were more than just a parade or a celebration.” In Colorado, Denver Pride initially shed sponsors as the pandemic eliminated in-person events. Joe Foster, vice president of development and communication at Denver Pride organizer The Center on Colfax, noted that some of the sponsors that remained helped Denver Pride “create a virtual space to celebrate Pride in an innovative way.” This year, Denver Pride has Pepsi, Nissan, Wells Fargo, US Bank and United Airlines at the top of its partners list, with sponsorship levels running several tiers deep. Even after some expansion, they’ve been sold out since April. “We had an overwhelming response to Denver Pride this year. We currently set a record for the number of sponsors and created a new opportunity for smaller nonprofits to participate with the same exposure as a regular sponsor with a Community Partners category.” TikTok to Be 2022 Presenting Sponsor of LA Pride Parade

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Pride Parades Take a Hard Look at Themselves, and Sponsors

The events are marching toward a more representative, relevant future

Jason Notte

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Jason Notte