My generation has lived through some crazy times. That’s hardly unique; everyone can say that, but it still hits me sometimes how unstable our world can be.
The whiplash swing of the Overton Window leaves many marginalized people in the lurch, fearing that they might become a target of scorn and public hatred at any moment. Especially these days, where being a target can literally threaten your life.
It’s hard to relax and be content with your life when you’re trapped in a state of uncertainty. It’s hard to smile and act like you aren’t afraid.
For marginalized communities, this fear is not new. Those who exist on the fringes due to some aspect of our identity — sometimes multiple aspects — feel out of place and targeted when our intrinsic characteristics are debated.
I shouldn’t have to have a spotlight put on me and provide an entire lecture on why I do exist, and I should be allowed to exist without harassment just because I was born autistic, asexual or female.
I didn’t get a survey questionnaire in the womb, guys. None of this was my choice; it’s just my reality.
Minorities are often forced into this corner, forced to justify their existence as if they’re doing something wrong by just trying to live the same everyday life as anyone else.
The more visible the identity, the more you’re forced to fight. The more of a spotlight is on you, the more of a target is painted on your back, and the more the eyes of society follow you everywhere you go.
It’s exhausting.
Watching your fight be co-opted as a marketing campaign pours salt into that open wound.
Marketing is a feelings game. It’s all about triggering an emotional response because contrary to what most people think, our brains make decisions based on feelings rather than logic.
You won’t convince people to buy your product by listing all of its qualities first. You need to make them want it. There’s a reason car commercials show people dominating the landscape with pick-up trucks or speeding powerfully along lonesome country roads.
You don’t want those cars because vehicles are convenient. You want them because they make you feel some kind of way about yourself when you drive them.
Advertising is basically a form of propaganda, and none of us are immune.
Grifts and Propaganda: Anybody Can Be Conned
How many times a day do you encounter false or misleading information?
Corporations get this. To make a profit, they will exploit topical hot-button issues to strike a nerve with their target audience.
Do you remember that awful Pepsi commercial that was on the air during the Black Lives Matter protests of 2017? The one that had Kendall Jenner solve police brutality by dancing through a protest and giving a can of soda to an armed riot cop?
To say that it was tone-deaf would be an outrageous understatement. It also didn’t damage Pepsi’s profits at all. Amid the very valid backlash and criticism, Pepsi’s numbers actually rose in the aftermath of the ad.
It was successful. And that’s absolutely infuriating.
It’s the same reason many corporations go all out with rainbows and messages about equality in June. Do they genuinely care about Pride? I’m sure some of the individuals do; queer people work at corporate offices.
But is that why they do it? No. They do it because they know people will want to wear Pride-themed merchandise around that time of year.
It’s all about image. The face you — and they — present to the world.
Corporations don’t promote DEI initiatives because they truly care about diversity, equity and inclusion. They do it because they know the majority of their customers care about it, and they want to make money.
And even those customers who don’t care about it probably want to pretend they do, if only for social media clout. Heck, corporations love it when hateful people buy mounds of Pride merch just to burn it for a viral video.
You think Anheuser-Busch was actually mad that people were posting videos of themselves destroying cases of Bud Light beer? Please, that was free advertising!
They had a drop in sales in the United States, but they’re doing great on the global market. Partnering with Dylan Mulvaney was a great move for them in the long term. Just don’t delude yourself into thinking they did it because they support trans people.
It is, in effect, a grift. And it’s one that exploits people’s pain.
Corporations are not our friends, and most of us are well aware of that.
We know that their advertising doesn’t reflect a genuine desire for change. We know that the Pride merchandise and the DEI initiatives will quietly fizzle out as soon as the month is over.
Heck, we know that it’s just a front; half of them talk a good game, but they don’t put their money where their mouth is behind the scenes.
They were posting a black square on social media, calling for equality and repeating ‘Black Lives Matter’ all day, every day, and all the while they were putting minority resumes on the bottom of the pile.
It’s a two-faced scam, and we all know it. And now that the Trump administration is making DEI and diversity dirty words which will negatively impact their bottom line, many major corporations are choosing to fall in line and obey.
They don’t really care. It’s about whatever makes them the most money.
Fighting for justice and equality is not about buying merchandise that lines the pockets of big corporations. It’s about walking the beat and taking action, being an actual ally.
I don’t want corporations to try and sell me Pride flags. I want them to make a genuine effort to improve the quality of life of their own workers.
More than anything, I want them to be honest.
I know that corporations don’t care about me, or any other queer person. I know they don’t care about social justice, or about community sustainability, or about racial equality or women’s rights.
I want them to stop pretending to care about me, because I’m not falling for it. My life and my hardships are not there for them to claim.
I’m not the face for your brand. Don’t treat me like a token you can cash in.
Solidarity wins.
We now live in a new world of autocrats and authoritarianism. I'm glad to see that Canada is hanging tough against it, despite some pushes from the outside. I'm afraid that the U.S. is headed for a big fall and will drag the rest of the western down with them when they go. I'm dreading next year because of the coming recession/depression. I'm also worried in the short term about all of this military in the blue cities thing. I don't think the politicians will stop this without a violent confrontation. I am now imagining Governor Pritzker of Illinois standing up his national guard or police to ward off Trump's troops. I imagine this also happening in places like Baltimore, Boston, Oakland, and other democrat led cities across the country if Trump deploys troops as he is saying. The U.S. is heading quickly for another mini version civil war and I live in a purple state. It's beginning to look like I may have to start leaving the house armed just to go grocery shopping or to The Home Depot soon. I would never have imagined living like this fifteen years ago.