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"Having corporate sponsors out there at the forefront and seeing them provides greater opportunity and visibility to get the message out that it's OK to be gay," said Robert Pompey, a senior vice president and co-chair of TD Bank's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Allies panel. This year, the company is sponsoring 20 gay pride parades. The company said it spends nearly $1 million annually on LGBT events and initiatives in the U.S. TD Bank has been sponsoring gay pride parades and festivals in various cities since 2009. In Boston, more businesses sponsor each year, leading to $143,000 in cash donations this year, a rise over recent years, but still less than the $186,000 in 2004, when there were fewer sponsors but larger donations, said Sylvain Bruni of Boston Pride, a group that organizes the parade. This year, cash donations reached $97,300, with much of that coming from 36 corporate donors, said Jen Parsons Soran, sponsorship director for the Utah Pride Festival. The number of corporate sponsors and cash donations has doubled in the last seven years for the Utah festival. "It was important for us to show the support in the civil rights movement that every person is equal," Simon said. , which was a first-time sponsor with a float in the Utah parade this year, has seen a bit of criticism in Facebook posts but no coordinated boycott, said Stormy Simon, the company president. There have been no reports of organized boycotts against companies. Some years ago, Ford resisted a pushback from the American Family Association against its support of gay groups, Varnum said. gay and lesbian population was estimated to be $830 billion last year, up from $610 billion in 2005, according to a study by Witeck-Combs Communications, a marketing firm specializing in the gay marketplace. They wouldn't keep coming if it wasn't working." "Advertising to the LGBT community is working. "They're recognizing that there's a loyal, reliable customer base," said Gregory Varnum of Equality Michigan, a group leading the fight for same-sex marriage rights in the state. Delta Air Lines employees handed out day packs, luggage tags and the same cookies that passengers get. JPMorgan Chase marchers wore T-shirts that said, "just be you." A Budweiser's semi-truck festooned with rainbow flags drove slowly through the parade, honking its horns.Īt the 43rd Motor City Pride Festival in Detroit, banners were adorned with corporate logos, including those of General Motors, Ford, Comerica bank, Kroger and Whole Foods Market. workers carried giant letters that spelled, "Love=Love," the theme of the parade.
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The continued transformation of the parades from small, defiant, sexually daring protests to family-friendly, mainstream celebrations has been on full display this summer as new companies join businesses that have been supporting the cause for years. Pride parades, held in cities across the world, commemorate the Stonewall riots, which started when police raided the Stonewall Inn bar in New York City in June 1969.At many companies, support for pride parades and festivals is being fueled by internal Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender councils who are given small budgets and freedom to spend that money where they choose. In the capital, the events were organised by Silom nightlife business operators. Prior to Covid-19, Pride parades were held in Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket. However, the Kingdom still does not legally recognise same-sex marriage, and discrimination against sexual diversity remains. “The organisers hope that Pride parade will become an important event on the calendar, similar to Songkran or Loy Krathong,” he said.ĭue to its relatively high tolerance to sexual diversity, Thailand is regarded as a “utopia” for LGBTI+ people by many foreign visitors who experience abuses in their home countries. Promsorn Veerathamjari, a representative of sex workers, said on Friday that this year’s Gay Pride event would also address social issues, in addition to sexual diversity. Every month is being correlated to Bangkok’s celebration of festivals. He added that as per his plan, June would be designated “Pride month”. We can live happily when we can accept diversity,” Chadchart said. “Bangkok is a city of diversity in many aspects, not just sexual diversity. Friday’s press conference included representatives from state agencies, including the Prime Minister’s Office, political parties, foreign embassies, and the private sector.Īmong the invited guests was Bangkok governor-elect Chadchart Sittipunt, who attended the event as an observer.