Corporate Pride Is Dying. Good.

Participants march with a MasterCard banner at NYC Pride March on June 30, 2024. This year, the company pulled its corporate sponsorship of NYC Pride. Photo: Hailstorm Visuals/Sipa USA via AP Images

As Pride month kicks off under a hostile federal government that takes its cues from a homophobic and transphobic far-right movement, the typical steady drip of rainbow-painted logos and feel-good news has been replaced with a stream of coverage of corporations pulling their sponsorship dollars from LGBTQ+ Pride events. This sudden withdrawal presents a material problem in queer circles, as advocates struggle to plan the increasingly bloated festivals that corporate cash has enabled in recent years.

It’s also an opportunity.

The corporate exodus has been swift and financially devastat