10 Ways Your Company Can Authentically Celebrate Pride
* In this blog, Seen@Work uses “LGBTQ” as an umbrella term that might be most familiar to our readership in 2021. People from different communities and parts of the world use different versions of this initialism to specifically indicate inclusion of intersex, asexual, two-spirit, pansexual, and other groups. To learn more about the intricacies of the acronyms you can read more here.
As storefronts, logos, and websites take on rainbow shades for the month of June, it is important companies ground themselves in authentic support and genuine celebration of the LGBTQ community during Pride Month. Pride in the workplace matters. We know that almost half of LGBTQ workers say they are not out at work, and 75% report experiencing negative day-to-day workplace interactions related to their LGBTQ identity and over half reporting that they witness jokes made about the community while at work.
In 2020, the US Supreme Court made the groundbreaking ruling that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects employees from discrimination on the basis of their gender identity and sexual orientation, protecting LGBTQ workers on a federal level. Still, 20% of LGBTQ people in the US have experienced discrimination based on their LGBTQ identity when applying to jobs, with LGBTQ people of color being significantly more likely to experience this type of discrimination. Anti-LGBTQ behavior and rhetoric is still very much alive in the workplace. Pride Month is more than rainbow swag; it is an opportunity to let LGBTQ employees, consumers, and clients know that they belong, and are valued, included, and respected at your company.
“Pride Month is more than rainbow swag; it is an opportunity to let LGBTQ employees, consumers, and clients know that they belong, and are valued, included, and respected at your company.”
Here are 10 ways to make sure your company is authentically celebrating Pride:
1. Get a head start on Pride-planning.
Impactful Pride celebrations and initiatives take significant forethought and preparation and cannot be cobbled together last-minute. An end-of-May scramble to pull something off can cause employees to perceive your efforts as disingenuous or reactive and can leave them feeling dismissed or overlooked. Instead, demonstrate your commitment to the LGBTQ community by prioritizing Pride Month as an integral aspect of your company’s broader diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy and vision.
2. Involve your LGBTQ employees as thought partners.
When planning your Pride activities, ask yourself, “Did we include all important perspectives while planning?” Be sure to give LGBTQ employees and employee resource group (ERG) members, if you have them, the opportunity to share their ideas or to participate in the planning process. Often ideation around Pride celebration at work starts with these employees, but nonetheless it’s critical to invite any feedback and guidance that they wish to share, while being cautious not to expect that LGBTQ employees want to take on additional work. Their experience of Pride at work should instead involve receiving support, recognition, and access to share their insights.
3. Include all employees in Pride activities, including allies.
Pride is an opportunity for an entire company to engage in the celebration of LGBTQ identities and rights. Instead of focusing solely on events for LGBTQ employees, opening activities to the entire company allows for collective learning and community building. Try selecting programming that could be enjoyed by everyone. It's important to keep in mind that some employees may not be out at work, so keeping activities open to all is an inclusive method for celebration.
4. Include educational experiences from diverse perspectives.
Many teachings about the history and importance of Pride center around a singular perspective but the community itself is so diverse. Identities very frequently overlap and intersectionality is an essential consideration when discussing the LGBTQ community and by including others, you are gaining critical perspectives that can help ensure that intersectionality is effectively addressed throughout your Pride month initiatives.
Have you thought about the difference in Pride for a white gay male vs. a Black trans woman? Acknowledging the variance in perspectives within the LGBTQ community and providing ways that your employees can learn is a crucial step in ensuring that your employees, especially those that may be less familiar with the LGBTQ community, understand why we celebrate.
“Acknowledging the variance in perspectives within the LGBTQ community and providing ways that your employees can learn is a crucial step in ensuring that your employees, especially those that may be less familiar with the LGBTQ community, understand why we celebrate.”
Consider holding a talk or discussion about what Pride might mean to different people or how race and other intersectional identities impact the LGBTQ experience or even how whitewashing has impacted our understanding of the history of Pride and the Stonewall uprising. Providing means of education and entry points for all employees to learn from diverse perspectives allows for a more holistic educational and celebratory experience.
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5. Focus on how your Pride programming will benefit members of the LGBTQ community.
Pride events and marketing campaigns run the risk of being perceived as pinkwashing, a term that describes an institution performing support of LGBTQ people without taking any action to address the community’s needs. If you are selling a rainbow version or Pride edition of a product, could you consider donating proceeds to an LGBTQ non-profit? Can you feature the work of your LGBTQ team members and collaborators, including designers, suppliers, and distributors? Are you making your organization a safe place for trans and non-binary employees and clients? Ensure that all your Pride activities are centered on the impact they might have on the LGBTQ community.
6. Make your efforts visible throughout your company and beyond.
While being mindful to avoid pinkwashing, you do want people to know about the meaningful steps you have taken to support LGBTQ people. Describing these efforts on your website and on social media allows you to show potential LGBTQ and allied customers and future employees that you have devoted significant resources to causes they care about. Internally, providing visible displays like posters, flags, desk decorations, or even badge lanyards gives employees the opportunity to signal their support. This can be especially meaningful when managers and executive leadership demonstrate their personal commitments to members of their teams.
7. Provide opportunities for joy and celebration.
Part of the magic of Pride is its unique position at the intersection of protest and party. LGBTQ people are plenty familiar with their own experiences of marginalization, discrimination, and trauma; time spent on education and advocacy should be matched with moments of healing and delight. Using this occasion to offer light-hearted celebration is its own important form of solidarity.
“LGBTQ people are plenty familiar with their own experiences of marginalization, discrimination, and trauma; time spent on education and advocacy should be matched with moments of healing and delight.”
8. Support local grassroots organizations.
As a part of your celebration, your company can invest time and money into supporting local organizations, communities, and LGBTQ-owned small businesses. This might include:
Ordering catering services for an event from an LGBTQ-owned restaurant.
Purchasing Pride month merchandise from small, LGBTQ-owned businesses and artists.
Gathering as a team to volunteer your time at local LGBTQ community centers, non-profits, or Pride events throughout your city or town.
Hosting an expo or marketplace in an accessible place featuring local LGBTQ-owned businesses.
Starting a donation-matching program that features local organizations and mutual aid funds.
9. Acknowledge this as an area for continued growth.
Perfection isn’t the expectation – effort is. The work that needs to be done within a workplace to make it truly inclusive has no end date; the growth is constant, messy, and evolving. Creating an environment where your employees feel like every part of their identities are valued will take more time than saying “Happy Pride Month” on June 1st. It’s important to acknowledge that your company (and its leadership) is learning and is committing to continued growth. Recognize possible missteps and take accountability for any harm that might occur along the way. Solicit and truly consider constructive feedback from your employees. Create long-term spaces for conversation. As a company and as a leader, be candid about where you stand on your education and growth and let your employees know that this company-wide growth isn’t over when the month ends. Which brings us to our final point-
10. Continue to brainstorm ways to keep this up all year.
Pride month is not the only time to show support for the LGBTQ community. In fact, a recent study concluded that LGBTQ employees who feel they can bring their full identities to work feel psychologically safer, more empowered to speak up, and more able to take creative risks. Continuing the work to making your organization a safe space for those who are part of this community not only creates a better work environment, but it is better for your business overall.
That’s why celebrating your LGBTQ employees for just one month isn’t enough. Pride is a fun and special time of the year, but to harness the power of an inclusive workplace, your work environment must be attuned to the needs of your employees the other eleven months of the year.
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