White Paper: Preparing for a Polarized Pride Month

Opportunity

Corporate Pride needs to reinvent itself to stay relevant to LGBTQ employees while at the same time steering clear of internal and external controversy that can damage an employer’s brand, avoiding performative initiatives and aligning all stakeholders on how Pride Month fits into the larger LGBTQ inclusion strategy.  

Key Themes

• Proactively working with key stakeholders to assess the risk of pushback, aligning on a communication strategy and then standing your ground is a Pride month necessity
• What determines whether an action or initiative is performative has less to do with what happens DURING Pride month but what happens BEFORE pride month
• Co-create Pride events, products and communications alongside LGBTQ employees and let them tell you what feels genuine 
• Don’t just fill up Pride Month with an assortment of activities and events. Be sure to align these activities with your year-round LGBTQ inclusion strategy
• Pride Month presents opportunities to both celebrate the incredible progress that the LGBTQ community has made while at the same time holding space and addressing the work that still needs to be done

Need to Know:

1. A clear majority of Americans still want to see corporations show up during Pride
2. With 479 anti-LGBTQ laws proposed in 2024 alone, a divisive presidential election months away and ongoing challenges to DEI programs, Pride 2024 is a test of allyship for companies who will find it harder than ever to find a shrinking middle ground
3. This is the first Pride Month since the Human Rights Campaign declared a national state of emergency in September 2023

Key Stakeholders: LGBTQ Employee Resource Group, Communications team, Human Resources, Executive Sponsor(s), DEI team

Contact Us: Mossier’s team of facilitators is prepared to help you navigate Pride month and design educational opportunities that advance LGBTQ inclusion. Click here for our training menu.