PINK WASHING

P I N K W A S H I N G Do the brands cashing in on LGBT+ Pride care more about equity than equality?

As the sun starts to shine in June, there is another awakening. Rainbow flags start appearing in store-front windows, social media profile pictures, and your neighbour’s front garden (well, maybe that’s just my neighbour’s rather questionable flagpole, currently sporting a Gerry Cinnamon flag). I digress. June has been the unofficial month celebrating queerness for decades. But as we see more and more rainbow products popping up around Pride month, it’s important to ask ourselves whether or not the gay rights movement has sold out to capitalism, specifically, by considering a concept called ‘Pinkwashing’. Pride month sees demonstrations and celebrations across the country, dedicated to celebrating LGBT+ people. In London, gay police officers march in uniform, and the red arrows fly overhead, in a statement of support for the community.

It could easily be argued that this is a positive thing – surely a contemporary gay rights movement should support queer people in all parts of public life, including these most traditional and powerful of British institutions. It must be a good thing that we have openly gay police officers and soldiers – the gay rights movement is all about acceptance and inclusion, right?

‘Pinkwashing’ is a term used to describe a process by which conservative institutions declare their support of gay rights to become visibly more enlightened, modern, and tolerant. Is there a problem with that? The issue with this fixation on inclusion at all costs is that it’s somewhat of a Faustian pact. Some queer people – most notably the white, middle-class, gay men in the community – are afforded the opportunity to lead a relatively normal, public 143 life. You can get married, you can excel in the workplace, and you are allowed a variety of legal rights. In exchange for these small mercies, you must not question these institutions any further, and you also must stifle the voices of the more demanding and inconvenient members of your community.

In recent years, Pride in London has been sponsored by a nationally recognised bank. This institution has not only been complicit in driving up global food prices, but also holds a 4.25% shareholding in a well-known arms dealer we’ll nickname, ‘BS’. BS, themselves, even participate in London Pride, showcasing their credentials as a supposedly LGBT-friendly employer. However, as of 2016, BS have dealt arms to at least thirteen sovereign powers, known to be committing homophobic and transphobic human rights violations against their own LGBT+ citizens. Is that something to be proud of?

Pinkwashing is a marketing strategy used to cover up the troubling realities and uncomfortable truths. It separates sexuality from class, race, nationality, religion, and gender, pushing the idea that we are all on an equal playing field, which is impossible under free-market capitalism. If the message behind the movement is equality, then we must also look at the ethical standpoint of the fastfashion brands churning out ‘affordable’ Pride month merch. Was my rainbow t-shirt – a symbol of equality – ironically made by a garment worker earning pennies an hour? Whether it’s a limitededition vodka bottle, or a rainbow filter on your social media profile picture, the message being sold is a deceptive one to straight and queer people alike – don’t question the status quo; everyone’s life is improving; things are progressing for everyone. Since the identification of the ‘Pink Pound’ in the 1990s, it’s been obvious why any retailer would be keen to promote their products to what was then a neglected consumer – there was a gap in the market. Since then, we’ve seen the normalisation of Pride-themed products, as well as astronomical growth in the LGBT community’s purchasing power in the UK (the pink pound), estimated at £6 billion per year, as of 2016.

There’s clearly money to be made from this so-called “dreammarket”; urban, well-educated, double-income household gay and lesbian couples. It’s for this reason that we must approach these supposedly LGBT-friendly corporations with caution. Who can we trust, when so many retailers only concern is fighting for equity, and not equality?

Now, this could be viewed as a rather cynical take on what is ultimately the promotion of inclusivity – and not every gay person thinks this way. Many shoppers embrace and enjoy the fruits of Pride month, viewing them as a fun way for companies to show their solidarity with the LGBT+ community. But does slapping a rainbow on your product really push any boundaries or drive the actual change Pride month seeks? It’s worth remembering Pride month is not a festival – it’s a commemoration of the Stonewall Riots, and all of the LGBT+ people who were persecuted not so long ago. They fought for the freedoms we have today, and what do we have to show for it; a pride-themed sandwich? The oppression of gay people in this country hasn’t magically disappeared either – just last year a lesbian couple were assaulted on a bus for no reason other than their sexuality. This wasn’t an isolated event either. In 2018, the Metropolitan Police released figures showing that attacks on London’s LGBT+ community have nearly doubled since 2014. A colourful t-shirt being sold down your local high street doesn’t

Image: IKEA’s 1994 ‘Dining Room Table’ Ad

suddenly mean this country is tolerant of gay people – the gay rights movement still has a long way to go.

All of this may seem rather irrelevant to companies whose focus is to make products which meet consumer demand, but the corporate social responsibility of brands is what consumers are really demanding today. This is the age of clicktivism and cancelculture, and more than ever, social media acts as a breeding ground for consumer activism, with Twitter in particular becoming a focal point for political and cultural discussion online. Between January and September 2020, nearly two million English-language tweets by US and UK users called for the boycotting of something, ranging from companies, to politicians, to entire countries. The brands that are guilty of tokenism need not necessarily be boycotted, but rather, should listen to their LGBT+ consumers, and learn from the companies that are making real change not only within their organisation, but for the LGBT+ community as a whole. An example of this would be Smirnoff’s collaboration with Manchester’s LGBT Foundation. This effort has seen the brand work closely with the charity and their volunteers, providing essential services and “nonjudgemental support and assistance to people in need in Manchester’s Gay Village”. IKEA is widely considered to be the first company to air an advert featuring a gay couple, and in doing so, created a real cultural milestone for the community. More recently, they launched a rainbow-coloured bag that saw 100% of the profits donated towards LGBT+ charities.

If we truly want to support the LGBT community, we should be supporting their small businesses too. By buying from LGBT-owned businesses, you are directly financially contributing to the cause, giving the owners a greater voice within their industry. During a pandemic, financial support is needed more than ever to ensure the survival of these businesses. However, as with all small businesses, they’re just not as abundant or convenient as those high-street chain stores you see everywhere you go. So, what can we, as the consumer, do to ensure that brands aren’t just piggybacking off Pride month? Obviously, we can’t just become separatists – sometimes pragmatism necessitates the support of powerful institutions to make our voices be heard, and to help the more vulnerable in the LGBT community. Therefore, we must hold the corporations looking to make a profit from Pride accountable, questioning their motives. What do they want from us? Who in our own community will we have to step over to get it? Will it help their brand image more than it helps us?

There’s a price to be paid for being capitalism’s sassy best friend.

Political and commercial alliances can feel like a huge step forward for the inclusion of LGBT+ people in wider society, but it’s not all rainbows and sunshine, and sometimes, it is necessary to reject the hand of support. After years of oppression, it may feel good in the spotlight; but there’s a price to be paid for being capitalism’s sassy best friend. By Lucia Moncur

Veronica:

Leather blazer, Primark £25 Black corset top, Primark £10 White collared shirt, Primark £7 Black trousers, Bik Bok £27 Pearl earrings, Primark £1 Black trainers, Model’s own

Josh:

Black beanie, Monki £6 Black leather coat, thrifted £15 White T-shirt, Weekday £12 Black satin skirt, Primark £13 Black trainers, Model’s own

Josh: Black beanie, Monki £6 Black shirt, Monki, Model’s own Blue jeans, H&M £27.99 Black trainers, Model’s own

Veronica: White blazer, Primark £10 Black cropped T-shirt, H&M £5 Cream satin skirt, Primark £13 Pearl earrings, Primark £1 Boots, Dr. Martens, Model’s own