Fair Weather Friends!

Some say you can't blame them; I say you can.

In years past, businesses would shower us with their support. Now? Nothing. The political climate has changed. For true friends, that shouldn't matter.

These brands deserted Pride Month. It could cost them.

By Jessica Guynn

USA TODAY

June 10, 2026

Key points:

• Levi Strauss released a Pride collection honoring queer motorcycle clubs, while REI featured a rainbow camping chair designed by nonbinary artist Alva Skog.
• Apple offered a Pride‑themed sport loop watchband and iPhone/iPad wallpapers for the month.
  
• Abercrombie & Fitch’s “Made with Pride” line included a $400,000 donation to The Trevor Project.
• According to a Harris Poll of nearly 5,000 U.S. adults, 77% of LGBTQ+ shoppers and 86% of LGBTQ+ Gen Z respondents said they would pay more for brands that meaningfully support gay and trans people.
• The same poll found that 42% of LGBTQ+ respondents would trust a brand less and 38% would look for another brand if it pulled back on Pride support.

Levi Strauss & Co.’s Pride collection celebrates queer motorcycle clubs as “the community protectors who became symbols of strength, safety and solidarity.” Nonbinary artist Alva Skog created a collection of rainbow clothing and gear, including a camping chair for REI. 

Apple has a Pride-themed sport loop watchband and Pride wallpaper for the iPhone and iPad. Abercrombie & Fitch's “Made with Pride”  lineup is accompanied by a $400,000 donation to youth crisis intervention organization, The Trevor Project. 

But this year’s Pride Month still has far less rainbow bling and fewer corporate sponsorships.

Pride Month has suffered corporate defections since gay and transgender rights emerged as a culture-war flashpoint and the Trump administration cracked down on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

We see, we remember.

“LGBTQ+ consumers are telling us that they notice when brands pull back, they can tell when support feels performative and many change how they shop when support disappears,” he said. 

Do you know why they courted us? We have disposable income. You know they used to call us: DINKs (Double Income, No Kids).

Pride celebrations struggle as corporate sponsorships dry up

NPR

By Hannah Frances Johansson

May 30, 2026

Pride celebrations across the country continue to lose out on large sponsorships as corporations, a key source of funding, shrink their affiliation with diversity causes and LGBTQ+ events.

Corporate sponsorships of celebrations in several cities, including New York City, Salt Lake City, Louisville, St. Louis, Orlando, and Pittsburgh are down from previous years, organizers said.

Jordan Braxton, co-president of the United States Association of Prides, which supports Pride celebrations nationwide, said that while some smaller Prides have seen a growth in sponsorships, a majority have seen a reduction.

She said the Trump administration's dismantling of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives, has scared corporations away from sponsoring Pride celebrations. "I think that's why some of the corporations have pulled back, because they don't want that government scrutiny," she said.

In a way, this is good! We can go back to our roots!

I guess you can say that the original Prides were Cooper's Donuts, the Black Cat Tavern, Dewey’s Lunch Counter, Compton's Cafeteria, and Stonewall. They were the original sites of Pride where we stood up and said... ENOUGH!

Then we started passing non-discrimination legislation... Marriage Equality! We grabbed the "brass ring" on the carousel, and the partying began!

Support for grassroots organizations like Love Makes a Family dried up, but then the corporate sponsors started coming—and a new phrase was coined: "Rainbow Capitalism."

Now we are in the third wave... the era of Trump.

Gay Inc. is still in full swing. But others who have to make their living off the streets are just scraping by, and the trans community has borne the brunt of Trump's attacks.

We remember our true friends, not the fair-weather friends.

We remember the politicians who stand beside us, not the ones who run away when a dark cloud passes by.

We remember the companies and businesses that stood by us in tough times.

And we have long memories.

What I have learned from history: is you don't want to be around us when we have a coffee in our hands.

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Our struggles continues, this is from this month!

Tennessee congressman called ‘absolutely idiotic’ by fellow Republicans after vile antigay post

June 3, 2026

By Christopher Wiggins

The Advocate

Republican Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee posted a message on X on Tuesday declaring that "homosexuality has no place in America" before deleting it amid criticism from Democrats, LGBTQ+ advocates, and fellow members of the GOP.

The Republican congressman published the message on Tuesday, the second day of Pride Month, adding, "Happy Nuclear Family Month." The post referred to a nonbinding resolution signed by Gov. Bill Lee in April that defines a nuclear family as "one husband, one wife" and their children.

Ogles later deleted the post and blamed a staff member, saying in a statement that he was working on his farm when his phone "began going crazy" over a post that he claimed was made by a member of his communications team.

"The post was stupid, hurtful and a complete distraction from my America First focus," Ogles wrote, adding that the employee had been reprimanded.

The explanation prompted skepticism from critics, who questioned how such a message could have been posted from the congressman's official account.

Congressman Mark Takano of California, who serves as the chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus and who is gay, sharply criticized Ogles.

“America is beautiful because every person, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity, is welcome here. Republicans turn to posting hateful garbage online because they have no real plans to solve problems for American families,” Takano told The Advocate. “I think Rep. Ogles’ explanation raises more questions, like what kind of people is he hiring that would have thought that tweet was a good idea in the first place? Whoever that staffer was clearly thought the tweet would fit Mr. Ogles’ voice because of his extreme anti-LGBTQI+ record.”