Ep. 209: State of Pride 2025

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EQ: What’s the state of Pride in 2025 and how are the vibes?

Happy Pride! Every June, all the LGBTQ+ people who spend the rest of the year doing stuff like commuting to work and spending quality time with family and friends and engaging in hobbies and going to the gym and agonizing over what to cook for dinner before settling on spaghetti because we already have it in the pantry. LGBTQ+ people still do all of those things, but with more rainbows.

In this episode of IWL, we start by unpacking Target’s Pride meltdown— from cutting its DEI programs to putting out a collection that feels more “in the closet” than celebratory. Brands are dialing back their Pride campaigns, worried about backlash from the right, and it shows in the uninspiring merch, reduced donations, and a lot less visibility for LGBTQ+ people. You may want to read The Year Pride Went Beige. We also get into the ridiculous false choices we’re presented with such as why we shouldn’t celebrate Pride because it’s Men’s Mental Health Month and other nonsense. We touch on something close to home for many in the community: biphobia. There’s been controversy this year around a few well-known bisexual figures, and it highlights how much we still need to do to confront harmful attitudes within our own spaces.

Do Your Fudging Homework:

  • Annie: living in ignorance is unsexy in 2025, so it’s time to do some reading about how the first Pride celebration was actually a riot and discover what responsibilities Americans, both LGBTQ+ and allies, have in the fight for queer issues which, consequently, affect the rights of straight people, too, especially the right to privacy. Get learnin’, everybody. 

  • Hope: The Broposal, Sonora Reyes! 

  • Megan: Look up the legislation that has passed regarding LGBTQIA+