Other Side Of The Rainbow

What does it take to move beyond lip service during Pride?

- NIDA NAEEM

It's that time of the year again. The gays have placed their bets on which brands will come up with the most atrocious Pride month campaigns.

Amid much discourse on rainbow-washing, hilariously offensive marketing gimmicks and VIBGYOR merch rear their heads like clockwork every June. In some instances, companies have masqueraded as allies while directly or indirectly supporting anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation and fostering work environments hostile to queer employees. While liberal circles are busy dissecting the contradictions between companies' advertising and actual practices, their conservative counterparts rain hell on brands for trying to be 'woke' and siding with the snowflakes in this culture war, sometimes even prompting them to withdraw their Pride collections altogether. Case in point: What happened with Target earlier this year.

While the commodification of queerhood was inevitable, we have reached a point where the pursuit of viral marketing milks reactionary outrage for clicks and shares. Who is Pride even for anymore? Queer folks just wanna have some fun(damental rights)', but here we are, picking up the pieces of late-stage capitalism.

SINCERITY REIGNS SUPREME