18-05-2025
As Trump targets DEI, some Oklahoma nonprofits say donors are backing out
Funding challenges are a constant in the nonprofit sector as organizations try to survive economic recessions, the COVID-19 pandemic and federal budget cuts.
Phones at the Oklahoma Center for Nonprofits have been ringing off the hook as organizations seek money and support to keep them afloat, said Marnie Taylor, the group's executive director.
But some organizations in Oklahoma are facing a new wave of funding challenges as corporate donors pull back their charitable giving to nonprofits aimed at diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. The Trump administration has applied increasing pressure to defund DEI initiatives, even outside of the public sector.
More: Performers, LGBTQ+ advocates fear potential impact of anti-drag bills on OKC's Pride festivals
Board members of Oklahoma Pride Alliance said they've lost some annual corporate sponsors for Oklahoma City PrideFest, leaving them to fill a $150,000 fundraising gap for their annual festival in downtown Oklahoma City.
"A lot of corporations are pulling their DEI [policies] and their support for LGBTQ+ employees in the workplace, which is really difficult to see," said Oklahoma Pride Alliance President Kylan Durant. "We thought we were making some big progress, I would say, over the last decade."
Another Oklahoma-based LGBTQ+ advocacy group, Freedom Oklahoma, also has seen corporate sponsors disappear.
Nicole McAfee, the group's executive director, said while Freedom Oklahoma isn't new to politically based funding cuts, pushback from corporate sponsors has ramped up with the second Trump administration.
McAfee estimated the group has lost out on tens of thousands of dollars, and is prepared to see those numbers grow.
'We often get apologies from people who have to be the bearer of bad news,' McAfee said. 'Just an assessment that as they think about their profits and their risks, they've decided that it feels too risky to contribute to organizations that have any stances that are seen as especially politicized right now.'
In January, President Donald Trump began issuing executive orders to dismantle DEI programs across the federal government and in higher education. The president also signed an executive order at the beginning of his second term banning transgender troops from serving openly in the U.S. military.
The political atmosphere is especially charged in Oklahoma. Lawmakers considered banning state employees from displaying Pride flags earlier this year and voted to ban state funds from supporting diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at higher education institutions. Senate Bill 796 was approved by the governor in May.
About two in five corporations are decreasing their marketing efforts for Pride Month, according to Gravity Research, a Washington, D.C.-based company that advises companies on social, political and reputational risks. After conservative activists confronted employees and vandalized Pride displays last year, Target is scaling back its Pride collection this year and won't carry the merchandise in all stores, according to USA TODAY. Bud Light, owned by beer giant Anheuser-Busch, is still struggling from repercussions over a 2024 social media campaign with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
LGBTQ+ pride celebrations across the country, such as San Francisco Pride and the Houston Pride Festival and Parade, are reporting their corporate sponsors are withdrawing support.
Durant said Oklahoma Pride Alliance hopes to raise more money for PrideFest this year through small donations, merchandise sales and VIP tickets. The nonprofit started an initiative to raise money called "Pride by the People." Fundraising events have included drag shows, yoga and T-shirt sales.
PrideFest will be June 27-29 in Scissortail Park in downtown Oklahoma City. The group estimated the event, which draws as many as 45,000 people, will cost $330,500.
'Coming together with other queer people really builds community, so that you fight for each other and find each other and really create these coalitions of other queer people to stand together with and support and build community with,' Durant said. 'That's just something that I'm really reminding people of is that the level of visibility that PrideFest creates is incredibly important, because it draws the community together.'
Like Oklahoma Pride Alliance, Freedom Oklahoma has moved to asking its base of supporters to donate to the cause, even in small amounts.
'It's both continuing to do that work and figuring out where we build those networks to help sustain this funding through really tough moments, and it's also continuing to figure out how we build across organizations who are facing similar fears in this moment to create some sustainability in a moment where the scarcity feels especially scary,' McAfee said.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma PrideFest losing sponsors as corporate giving drops
