19 companies pulling back their support for Pride
For years, major corporations publicly celebrated the LGBTQ community. Corporations regularly highlighted the contributions of LGBTQ employees, facilitated LGBTQ resource groups, donated to pro-LGBTQ charities, and sponsored Pride Month parades each June. This was supposedly part of a principled commitment to inclusion, including the full spectrum of sexual orientations and gender identities.
But, in recent years, many Republicans, including President Trump, have decided that valuing diversity, including the LGBTQ community, constitutes discrimination against straight white men. Pride parades, fun events about accepting people for who they are, were rebranded by these Republicans as part of a nefarious scheme to indoctrinate children. Trump has issued several executive orders targeting the LGBTQ community and pressured corporations to end diversity, equality, and inclusion (DEI) activities.
The pressure campaign appears to be working. Numerous corporations that have previously presented themselves as champions of the LGBTQ community have pulled their support for Pride parades this month, a Popular Information investigation reveals.
In prior years, for example, Lowe's said it was "proud to celebrate LGBTQA+ Pride month" and posted pictures of its staff wearing rainbow-themed Lowe's sweatshirts.
"As #PrideMonth comes to a close, we will continue to proudly stand with the LGBTQA+ community and are committed to sharing how #LowesIsLove," the company posted in 2020.
But this year, Lowe's ended its participation in surveys conducted by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation's largest LGBTQ organization. Lowe's also shuttered an employee resource group for LGBTQ employees and ended its sponsorship of Pride parades.
A Lowe's spokesperson said the company "will continue to strive to cultivate a workplace that reflects the customers and communities where we operate and where everyone feels welcomed, valued, and respected."
Lowe's is just one of 19 companies that have ended their support of Pride parades, in whole or in part, this year.
The corporate pullback has left several Pride parades short on cash. NYC Pride faces a $750,000 budget gap after losing corporate sponsors. Pride parades in San Francisco and Kansas City are each about $200,000 short. Smaller parades are faring even worse. Eve Keller, co-president of USA Prides, a network of parade organizations, said that "rural Prides are down 70% to 90% when compared to the average year."
Dyson
In 2024, Dyson sponsored Chicago Pride. Dyson also celebrated participating in Pride events in Chicago, Toronto, and Mexico City in a post on LinkedIn. “At Dyson, we are proud to celebrate our people and owners from around the world and engage with the LGBTQIA+ community and allies,” the company wrote.
But this year, Dyson is no longer listed as a sponsor on the Chicago Pride website. Dyson did not respond to a request for comment.
Nivea
Last year, Nivea sponsored the Pride parade in Chicago. The company’s website advertises their “Be proud in your skin” initiative, boasting that the company is “supporting the LGBTQ+ community and their parents, families and non-family allies.” The company’s website states, “At NIVEA, we go beyond skincare and believe that everyone deserves to feel safe, celebrated, and proud in their own skin.”
But this year, Nivea is not listed as a sponsor on the Chicago Pride website.
Tiffany & Co.
Tiffany & Co. sponsored multiple Pride events last year, including events in Chicago and Los Angeles. Tiffany & Co.’s website states that the company “supports the LGBTQIA+ community—not only during Pride Month, but always.”
But Tiffany & Co. is no longer listed as a sponsor for Pride in either Chicago or Los Angeles. Tiffany & Co. did not respond to a request for comment.
Toyota
In 2024, Toyota was a sponsor of Los Angeles Pride. An article posted on Toyota’s corporate website in June 2024 states that, “[Pride month is] a celebration of the diversity that colors the LGBTQ+ community.” The article boasts that Toyota was ranked number two in a list of “Top Compan[ies] for LGBTQ+ employees.”
But in October, the company announced that it would “halt sponsorship of LGBTQ events,” according to a memo obtained by Bloomberg. According to LA Pride organizers, Toyota did not “renew a three-year deal that had expired.” Toyota did not respond to a request for comment.
Capital One
In 2024, the Capital One Café sponsored Miami Beach Pride. A 2021 article on Capital One’s website states that the company “believe[s] it’s our responsibility to continuously advocate for an equitable and inclusive society, where everyone regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression feels empowered to be themselves and have an equal opportunity to thrive.”
But Capital One Café is not listed as a sponsor for Miami Beach Pride this year. Capital One did not respond to a request for comment.
UPS
In 2024, UPS sponsored Atlanta Pride. On June 1, 2024, UPS posted on X, “Happy Pride Month! Today and every day, we’re proud to celebrate our employees bringing their authentic selves to work.”
But this year, UPS is not listed as a sponsor for Atlanta Pride. UPS did not respond to a request for comment.
Disney
In 2024, Disney sponsored Long Beach Pride in California. A 2023 press release on the company’s website boasts, “During Pride Month and throughout the year, we celebrate our LGBTQIA+ employees, consumers, and fans around the world.”
But this year, the company is not listed as a sponsor of Long Beach Pride. (Disney cast members did participate.) Disney did not respond to a request for comment.
DoorDash
In 2024, DoorDash sponsored Long Beach Pride. DoorDash also celebrated Pride in a 2024 post on its website, writing that the company is “proud to offer an inclusive environment, where everyone can be their true, authentic selves.”
But DoorDash is absent from the list of this year’s Long Beach Pride’s corporate sponsors. DoorDash did not respond to a request for comment.
Live Nation
Live Nation sponsored Los Angeles Pride in 2024. Live Nation also celebrated Pride on X last year, posting, “Happy Pride! Celebrating this month with a few of our favorite artists that are pushing boundaries and breaking down barriers in music.”
But this year, Live Nation is no longer listed as a sponsor of Los Angeles Pride. Live Nation did not respond to a request for comment.
Anheuser-Busch
Anheuser-Busch, which makes Budweiser beer, has withdrawn its support from Pride festivals in San Francisco and St. Louis. In St. Louis, where the company is based, Pride organizers said that losing Anheuser-Busch’s support after working with them for 30 years left the festival short of $150,000. Organizers of Columbus, Ohio’s Pride festival have also said Anheuser-Busch will not sponsor their event this year.
In 2023, the Human Rights Campaign removed Anheuser-Busch from the top of its Corporate Equality Index after it said that the company failed to properly respond to online backlash over a partnership between Budweiser and Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender social media influencer.
Previously, Anheuser-Bush published a webpage supporting Pride, but it has since been archived. The page read, “Our people are our greatest strength, and we measure ourselves by the quality and diversity of our teams. Our LGBTQIA+ community has led the way in fostering an inclusive environment where all our colleagues can be their authentic selves.”
Diageo
Diageo, a beverage company that makes products like Guinness, withdrew support from San Francisco Pride, but told NPR that it still plans to support a Pride festival in Long Beach, California.
Last year, Diageo said that “Pride month is a wonderful way to celebrate the community as well as recognising the steps still required to ensure that acceptance is everywhere.”
PepsiCo
While PepsiCo will still sponsor a smaller Pride festival in California, it has dropped out of sponsoring New York City’s Pride festival.
At the start of Pride Month in 2023, PepsiCo posted on X, “We’re proud of our employees who bring their whole selves to work + we’re committed to fostering a workplace where everyone has a voice + equal opportunity to achieve their full potential.”
Nissan
Nissan has also withdrawn support from New York City’s Pride, saying that it is currently reviewing all of its marketing efforts, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Previously, Nissan has emphasized being an inclusive company for LGBTQ employees. In 2017, it boasted that it had received a perfect score on the HRC’s Corporate Equality Index for the fifth year in a row. In 2022, Nissan posted on X that the company “is a proud supporter of LGBTQ+ community and their chosen families.”
PricewaterhouseCoopers
In addition to Nissan and PepsiCo, consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has stopped sponsoring New York City’s Pride.
PwC’s website says that the firm supports LGBTQ employees. “We support a workplace where lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and other (LGBT+) solvers can bring their best selves to work and feel the full support of their PwC family,” reads the company’s “LGBT+ Inclusion” webpage.
Citi
New York City’s Pride has also lost the support of Citi, despite the fact that the financial services company has previously said that it supports the LGBTQ community. “We’re proud to stand with the LGBTQIA+ community to work towards an inclusive environment where everyone can feel seen,” Citi wrote on Instagram last year.
Mastercard
After working with Heritage of Pride, the nonprofit that has organized New York City’s Pride march for a decade, Mastercard will not rejoin the festival as a corporate sponsor this year — although it will still “participate” in Pride events, according to the Wall Street Journal. The company will also sponsor Miami Beach Pride. A Mastercard spokesperson told the WSJ that “Mastercard is a longstanding supporter of the many communities of which our employees are members, including the LGBTQIA+ community globally.”
Booz Allen Hamilton
Consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton is no longer sponsoring Washington, D.C.’s Pride festival, a decision the company said it made to comply with “recently issued presidential executive orders.”
Previously, Booz Allen Hamilton was a vocal supporter of LGBTQ issues. According to Politico, a company webpage from 2024 read, “For two decades and counting, we’ve dedicated ourselves to the advancement of our lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, non-binary, queer, and questioning employees.”
Deloitte
Deloitte has also stopped sponsoring D.C.’s Pride. But the company’s website calls for active support of LGBTQ people: “We believe the power of ‘allyship’ is a critical element of LGBT+ diversity, whereby our people support the rights and wellbeing of their LGBT+ colleagues. Allyship isn’t just passive support, but part of our everyday actions - visibly and vocally supporting LGBT+ people inside and outside of Deloitte.”
UPDATE 6/4: In response to a request for comment, Nivea said that the company “believe[s] everyone deserves to feel seen, supported, and proud of who they are every day.” The company said that while it is not sponsoring Pride Chicago this year, it is still sponsoring Pride in the Park in Connecticut and PFLAG’S National Convention in Chicago in October.
It’s important to remember that corporations are people and those people are HUUUUUGGGGEEEE assholes.
Starting to think a list of corporations standing by their “principles” might be a shorter list than this one.