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That’s what I’ve always loved about Pride, feeling that web of connection. The political component was still there, but it was fun, it became a celebration, a time to socialize, see old friends and make new ones. Paul as a place to try to win the repeal of an early gay rights ordinance.Īnyone who was a Target City Coalition regular was duty bound to help out with Pride, which had been more like a march and a protest rally, and then it evolved. I got involved because my old boyfriend Bob Bruneau became the treasurer of Target City Coalition, a 1970s activist group formed to combat antigay crusader and orange juice spokester Anita Bryant. It wasn’t just one focus.Ĭlaude Peck: It was all very grassroots. There was a lesbian resource center at that time and some very brave women held it and we marched for all social causes. Are they donating proceeds from every purchase to causes that support us year-round? Are they investing in LGBT-owned businesses to make the goods they are selling?" Lovitz said.Meadow Muska: Many lesbians, we had been marching for everybody - for children who are hungry, Native American rights, African American rights. Ask what they are doing with that economic loyalty. "It means going much deeper than hoping to see your favorite brand represent the community with a pride flag. It's never been easier to vet a business - the HRC Foundation's Corporate Equality Index rates workplaces based on LGBTQ equality - and the onus is on consumers to do their due diligence before patronizing businesses. If you include us authentically all year long, it's not as much of a shock to the system when a rainbow appears because you had us on the journey with you all along because you were showing interracial lesbian parents in your toothpaste ads in October, not just in June," Lovitz said. "Just plopping the rainbow on packaging doesn't mean you are LGBT-friendly or supportive. New documentary explores the state of gay pride in America 04:38Ĭompanies that are successful in making the rainbow connection show a "year-round, trickle-down, 360-degree commitment to the community," NGLCC's Lovitz said. AT&T also powers the Trevor Project's text and chat counseling services for potentially suicidal LGBTQ youth.īut there also can be a lot of "Pride clutter," and authenticity is key to businesses standing out, according to David Paisley, senior research director at Community Marketing & Insights.
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Many companies that wave the rainbow flag at consumers do give back, LGBTQ advocates say. You have to live your mission and you have to actually take the risk of doing it," Edelman said. You can't just advertise and expect people to believe you. "They have to take action.you can't do brand-washing, you can't just buy people's attention," he said. Two-thirds of consumers worldwide identified themselves as "belief-driven buyers," indicating that they expect brands "can make change and not just talk about it and do advertising," Richard Edelman, president and CEO of Edelman, recently told CBSN. In general, consumers of all kinds say that their purchase decisions are driven by companies' social and political stands. Verizon LGBTQ pride campaign "Love Calls Back" 01:00 This is well-understood by wireless provider Verizon, a corporate giant with more than $130 billion in revenue that for a second year has partnered with PFLAG, the nation's oldest organization uniting LGBTQ people and their families, to help it build programs, call centers and education resources in underserved communities.Īs Diego Scotti, Verizon's chief marketing officer, explained in an email to CBS MoneyWatch: "Verizon's customers are diverse across the spectrum in gender, race, age, sexual orientation, culture, etc., so our marketing needs to be inclusive of our base." "That's why it's so important for companies that advertise rainbow merchandise or that march in Pride events to make sure those commitments don't end on June 30, and recognize that LGBT inclusion is 7 days a week, 365 days a year," Lovitz said. Indeed, 78% of LGBTQ community members said they are inclined to support companies that market to and support LGBTQ people, according to report by Community Marketing & Insights, an LGBTQ-focused business research firm.