Rainbow-washing is dead
Let’s welcome an era of authentic support
There’s been a lot of hullabaloo in the media about rainbow-washing in recent years. And for good reason: from disingenuous Pride campaigns to the downright cringey attempts from corporations to be ‘in’ with the queer crowd, the controversy has been loud and the hypocrisy louder. The whole thing has left a lot of people confused: after all, if companies are championing the rainbow flag and supporting all things gay in the month of June, what’s the problem?
On the face of it, corporations supporting Pride Month are a marker of social progress, especially when we reflect on a time – not so long ago – when promoting LGBTQIA+ rights was a surefire profit killer. Nowadays, swapping out your black-and-white logo for a camp-ified rainbow replacement is all the rage. Fashion giants churn out questionable Pride collections adorned with ‘Love is Love’ slogans while rainbow colour palettes weasel their way onto every purchasable item imaginable.
Written by Sophie Barnes, June 2024
The problem
To better understand the impact of Pride marketing, consider that 50% of Millennials – the world’s largest consumer group – are not only more likely to support a brand after seeing an ‘equality-themed ad’ but are also more likely to choose them over their competitors (source: VOCAST). Moreover, the combined global purchasing power of the LGBTQIA+ community is $3.7 trillion USD (source: VOCAST). With these figures in mind, the issue of Pride marketing becomes one of transparency and authenticity, because when well-intentioned people buy Pride products with the belief that they’re supporting the queer community, major corporations pocket the profits without actually providing any form of support to the oppressed minorities they’re supposedly advocating for. And, in many cases, these are the same fast fashion corporations actively contributing to poverty and inequality through unethical supply chains and exploitative working conditions in developing countries.
In recent years, brands have attempted to combat rainbow-washing accusations by contributing a portion of their Pride collection profits to LGBTQIA+ organisations and hiring queer talent to model their products. But the issue of hyper consumerism and disingenuous Pride marketing remains: why should we have to buy products before brands are willing to donate? And with so little transparency around fast fashion supply chains, how can we be sure that what we’re buying isn’t contributing to someone else’s oppression? Others have highlighted the tokenism of hiring queer models exclusively to shoot Pride collections, pointing out that it would be far more empowering for LGBTQIA+ people to see themselves represented at any time of the year – not only during June.
Others feel that the corporatisation of Pride detracts from its true meaning and origin: Pride month began in June 1969 as a series of riots to protest police brutality and continues as a movement in support of queer liberation against systems of oppression today. Using the Pride flag on ordinary products to bolster sales without any direct relevance or relation to queer emancipation is corporate greed at best, and is damaging to the community at worst. According to Vogue Business, queer people are statistically more likely to experience poverty, have lower wages and are less likely to be in the position to actually buy Pride products. So this begs the question: who are Pride collections actually for?
How to avoid rainbow-washing
Anti-corporate sentiment has a lot of brands pondering how they can alter their marketing strategies to reflect genuine support for the LGBTQIA+ community, and, ultimately, avoid rainbow-washing. Below I’ve highlighted a series of practical steps that can be taken, but if I had to summarise it in one sentence, it’s that ‘actions speak louder than words’.
Be ‘proud’ all year long
If brands are aiming to raise funds for LGBTQIA+ initiatives through Pride campaigns and collections, then this should be done year-round. If a brand is radio silent every other month of the year but suddenly bursts onto the Pride Month scene decked from head to toe in rainbow garb, it’s going to scream disingenuous to anyone paying attention. The key is to be consistent in your support. Brands that are serious about Pride are moving away from a Pride Month strategy and toward a ‘Pride all year round’ approach. This doesn’t mean keeping the rainbow-ified logo active all-year round, but rather taking actionable, measurable steps to support the community.
Hire LGBTQIA+ talent year-round
It’s unethical to limit the support of queer talent to Pride Month only. True allyship happens when we book people year round, and not just for their sexual orientation or identity. Afterall, it’s much more empowering for LGBTQIA+ people to see themselves promoted and endorsed in campaigns year-round rather than simply being booked for jobs during Pride Month as the token queer to showcase a brand’s sudden ‘wokeness’. What we’re aiming for is a future whereby a transgender person can be booked for a shoot and their gender identity isn’t even the focus of the campaign.
Donate 100% of profits
One thing is for certain: brands should not create Pride collections if its profits are not contributing to the community. This seems to be a well-established fact among Pride Month corporate culture, but there are still a number of fast fashion brands that are yet to catch on. Nowadays, brands should be creating collections only if they’re donating 100% of the profits. Or, better yet, let's ditch the collections and focus entirely on donations.
Involve LGBTQIA+ people
When a brand has had any major Pride Month campaign flop, it’s almost entirely certain that there wasn’t a single queer person in the decision-making process. Involving queer people in the creation of your Pride campaign isn’t just an ethically-sound decision, it’s a good business practice to ensure authenticity and avoid disaster.
Ensure an inclusive internal culture
At the very least, companies need to have inclusive internal working cultures and corporate policies in place to ensure the safety, dignity and respect of LGBTQIA+ people on all organisational levels. Before brands can create external marketing campaigns to promote or support equality, they need to ensure that they’re ‘practising what they preach’ internally, too.
Amplify queer voices
When speaking on issues that disproportionately affect the LGBTQIA+ community, it’s best to hand the mic over. One of the best ways that a brand can advance minority rights is to use their platform to amplify their voices. It’s about giving space to marginalised groups and empowering minorities to speak on the issues that affect them from a firsthand perspective.
Partner with LGBTQIA+ organisations and non-profits
We’re starting to see an increase in brands partnering with LGBTQIA+ organisations to show continued support for the community beyond Pride Month. This is a great way to directly support marginalised communities and offers an opportunity for education.
