6 days ago
Some corporations are pulling back from Pride. Boston LGBTQ+ organizations are trying to adapt.
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TODAY'S STARTING POINT
A rainbow flag
But if it looks like Pride Month as usual, a backlash is brewing beneath the surface.
As the Trump administration targets transgender Americans, scrubs words like 'orientation' and 'identity'
'Whether or not they're scared of any retribution or whether or not they just don't want to be noticed, we know that there's a lot of reasons why companies are pulling back,' said Alexandria Eberhardt, executive director of the
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The pullback from Pride reflects a broader shift in how corporations are approaching politics in President Trump's second term. As today's newsletter explains, the changes are forcing LGBTQ+ organizations to adapt — and causing some to question how much they can rely on companies in the future.
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A changed landscape
For Christina Pascucci-Ciampa, the run-up to Pride Month is usually the busy season.
Pascucci-Ciampa owns
But when I spoke to her last week, Pascucci-Ciampa was working on just one. 'We are definitely seeing a downturn,' she said.
Eberhardt has seen a similar slowdown. The LGBT Chamber currently has 45 corporate partners, she said, down from more than 50 before the 2024 presidential election. 'These are organizations that have been with us for years, that have stood in parades and worked with our businesses,' Eberhardt said.
The pullback echoes a nationwide trend. After Trump won, Target, McDonald's, and other companies eliminated DEI policies. (Some, such as Costco, refused to do so.) Some big companies have declined to sponsor Pride events in
Companies are free to decide whom to give money to, and maximizing profitability generally
means trying to avoid consumer backlash. The conservative boycott of Bud Light after it partnered with a transgender influencer in 2023 has become a cautionary tale.
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But for Eberhardt, the element of choice is part of what makes the pullback painful. 'You have so many options and you've chosen us for so many years because allegedly you believed in us, and now you don't,' she said. 'It absolutely feels like a betrayal.'
Some of the current climate stems from the administration, which has sought to ban trans people from the military, removed books about LGBTQ+ issues
But the country also seems to be experiencing a broader backlash to LGBTQ+ rights. Most Americans
Another way?
The pullback has some Boston LGBTQ+ organizations reevaluating their reliance on corporate munificence. 'It's an absolute learning moment,' Eberhardt said.
Some were already there. The
eschew corporate money. 'We think that corporations historically have not supported our community, and we see that today,' Hamel said. Instead, the Dyke March relies on donations, small grants, and merchandise sales to fund its annual Pride event, which Hamel said costs around $16,000.
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But what works for some may not for others. The Mass. LGBT Chamber connects businesses with the banks and companies that can help them grow. And as both Eberhardt and Pascucci-Ciampa emphasized, plenty of companies remain eager to partner.
Yet the economic pressures are real. The chamber's partner corporations pay dues, and a sustained pullback could hurt its ability to support local businesses. Eberhardt is looking to diversify the chamber's revenue. Pascucci-Ciampa is also seeking new partners — 'businesses who put their money where their mouth is' — that share her store's values even in hard times.
For many LGBTQ+ groups and allies, the moment has also bred solidarity. As Pascucci-Ciampa put it, 'We're not going to get through these tougher times unless we build community, unless we are there for each other, and unless we build each other up.'
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