Dakota Beacon

Mayor Muriel Bowser, kicking off Pride Month in Washington, D.C., proclaimed the US capital to be the “gayest city in the world.” She made that announcement two years ago. Yet again this year she threw down the gauntlet. “I am proud to be the mayor of the…gayest city in the world.” Other cities since accepted that challenge.

Pride marches across the country began as early as May 18 this year. Turning Point USA reported on West Hollywood’s Pride Weekend where public indecency during the June 1 parade reached shocking levels.

Not to be outdone, Governor Tim Walz offered a Minnesota proclamation that highlighted the state’s efforts to “recognize and celebrate the significant contributions of LGBTQ+ people.” He emphasized Minnesota’s progress as a “trans refuge state.” Walz concluded, “Now, therefore, I, Tim Walz, Governor of Minnesota, do hereby proclaim June 2025 as PRIDE MONTH in the State of Minnesota.”

Pride events began a few decades ago as an activist effort pushing back against the stigma of homosexuality. June 1970 produced the first Pride marches held in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. “Celebrations” for an extreme minority of sexual misfits now extended throughout June and across the US. However, this year saw a pushback against the activists.

So far, 2025 turned out to be a year of exceptional repositioning by major brand companies. Earlier, these companies announced their intention to drop DEI and progressive political causes. Company executives came to see financial suicide by teaming up with pride pontificators. They will no longer sponsor June’s spectacular in-your-face sexual deviance celebration. What took them so long?

For months the handwriting has been on the wall. For example, San Francisco Pride leaders in March acknowledged a withdrawal of corporate sponsors. They had a $300,000 shortfall in their $2.3 million goal. That shortfall continues to increase. Companies like Comcast, Anheuser-Busch, and Diageo (parent company of alcoholic beverages like Guinness and Smirnoff) have backed away from sponsorship.

Other cities nationwide also felt the impact of the pullback. Brands such as Amtrak, Anheuser-Busch, Benefit Cosmetics, Boeing, Booz Allen Hamilton, Citi, Comcast/Xfinity, Garnier, Goldman Sachs, Lowe’s, Mastercard, Meta, Nissan, Pepsi, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Skyy Vodka, Target, Visa, and Walmart pulled back Pride sponsorships and donations this year. As a result, Pride organizers nationwide feel the crunch.

Corporate scale back on Pride Month: What started the big turn around? The simplest and most obvious answer would be to “follow the money.” Both LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ adults were always skeptical about the motivations of corporate support for Pride Month festivities. An overwhelming 68% of LGBTQ adults say all or most corporations do so to further business interests. Duh!

That consideration came to light when the Trump administration ended diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs across the federal government. The Feds then warned corporations against DEI programs that could violate federal civil rights laws. Corporate leaders are not stupid. They reassessed their DEI initiatives looking to avoid potential legal troubles. On a larger scale they reevaluated their public positions on political issues that could bring undesired public attention.

Besides San Francisco, Pride organizers nationwide face major funding shortfalls. Here are some other cities’ Pride organizations in trouble: New York City (down 20% or $750,000 from last year), Salt Lake City (short $400,000 or half of its budget), Washington, D.C. (off $260,000), Kansas City (-$200,000), St. Louis (-$150,000), and Houston (-$100,000). Many other celebrations in Colorado, Florida, Ohio, Arkansas, and North Carolina have also lost funding.

We should not get our hopes too high even though Pride Month may face an uncertain financial future. After all, financial replenishment could always come by way of crowdfunding. At least that would limit funds to likeminded people. In the words of Eve Keller, co-president of USA Prides, “We had Pride before corporate sponsors paid us any attention. We’re getting back to our community roots with people wanting to connect and collaborate with each other.”

Dennis M. Patrick can be contacted at (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).