LGBTQ+ Parades Held Across U.S. as Corporate Sponsorship Plummets Amid Trump’s Anti-Diversity Policies

Political Backlash Fears Over Trump Administration's 'Anti-DEI' Policies
Corporate Sponsorship of Pride Events Drops Significantly

As President Donald Trump pursues policies aimed at eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), including LGBTQ+ rights, parades featuring Pride flags?a symbol of LGBTQ+ human rights?were held in major U.S. cities such as New York, San Francisco, and Chicago.

According to local media reports on June 29 (local time), tens of thousands of people participated in Pride parades in downtown areas across major cities nationwide, including not only New York but also San Francisco, Chicago, Denver, and Seattle. Reports indicate that this year, corporations sharply reduced their sponsorships of the events due to concerns about political backlash.

Parade participants hold a large Pride flag at the New York Pride March. Photo by AFP.

The New York Pride March, now in its 55th year, is the largest LGBTQ+ festival in the United States. Under the slogan "Stand Up: Pride and Protest," this year's New York event saw 75,000 people join the march, and organizers reported that the number of spectators reached approximately 2 million.

The New York Pride March began as a commemoration of the Stonewall Riots, a large-scale protest that erupted in June 1969 after police raided the Stonewall Inn?a bar in Manhattan frequented by LGBTQ+ individuals?and arrested many patrons.

Since then, the Stonewall Inn has become a symbol of LGBTQ+ rights, and every year at the end of June, Pride marches are held not only in major U.S. cities such as New York, San Francisco, and Chicago, but also in cities around the world.

Meanwhile, this year’s events saw a significant reduction in corporate sponsorships in response to the Trump administration’s anti-DEI policies. According to an April report by Gravity Research, a corporate reputation risk research firm, 39% of major companies planned to either withdraw or reduce their sponsorship of this year’s Pride events. No company responded that it would increase its sponsorship.

Corporations fear that sponsoring Pride events could make them targets of the Trump administration or subject them to boycotts.

According to event organizers cited by the Associated Press, as of early this month, corporate sponsorships for New York Pride had decreased by about 20%, and San Francisco Pride lost five major sponsors, including Comcast and Anheuser-Busch.