The Surprising Benefit of Corporate Pride
There are advantages to big businesses pandering with LGBTQ symbols.
By Björn Jóhann
The first summer after I came out, I passed by a Target, its storefront filled to the brim with rainbows.
It was June. Pride month. And this Target was feeling itself. On display in the window, loud and proud, was a collection of rainbow-themed summerwear: swim trunks, tank tops, bras, running shorts, flip flops. Each barbarically loud color erupted in a cacophony of beautifully disjointed rainbows.
I couldn’t help by pausing by the window — something, not just the rainbows, but something just grabbed my attention.
Did it look tacky? Yes. Was the rainbow spread a bit garish? Hell yeah. Were they probably doing it just to make a quick buck on nearby yuppie twinks? Of course.
But did I walk inside and buy myself a tacky rainbow swimsuit? You bet my gay ass I did.
As I slid my credit card across the counter, I began to put on my finger on why this impulse buy mattered to me. These cheesy, silly pieces of merchandise made me feel seen.
