Wave your rainbow flag high while making a difference for the community.
Every year, designers and brands release collections in honour of Pride month, and this year is no different. But before you shop, it’s important to be mindful of a marketing tactic called “rainbow washing.” This is when a business shows public solidarity for LGBTQIA2S+ people by rainbow-ifying their brand for the month of June while privately engaging in practices that are actually harmful to the community.
There’s no arguing that we’ve seen immense progress for LGBTQIA2S+ rights in the past few decades, but there’s still a long ways to go. Between “Don’t Say Gay” bills being considered in Florida and other states in the U.S. and the continuous threat to trans rights, there is still much work to be done to achieve true equality.
So, if you decide to shop Pride fashion this year, why not stick to those brands that are *actually* putting their money where their mouth is? From denim corsets to rainbow-coloured sunnies to metallic sandals, here are 17 brands giving back to the LGBTQIA2S+ community through their Pride collections.