Every June, queer people all around the world commemorate and celebrate Pride Month, a time for the LGBTQIA+ community to be proud of who they are, celebrate their achievements, and reflect on their past and present hardships; and it’s also the time when many brands use social media to celebrate Pride Month.
Pride Month is also a time for allies — both corporate and individual — to come out in support of the LGBT community, and one method to do so is through the use of social media.
It allows companies and small businesses to promote awareness about the value of Pride. It also helps assist the community and nurture lasting change.
Continue reading if you’re seeking practical methods to show up and celebrate Pride on social media.
What Is The True Meaning of Pride?
Pride is much more than just a once-a-year march.
In truth, it is strongly rooted in the LGBT liberation struggle, with the Stonewall Riots in June 1969 being one of the most well-known examples.
Fed up with police persecution and demanding the right to live openly and freely as their true selves, members of the queer community began to demonstrate at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village in New York City.
However, the Stonewall Riots were not the first demonstration.
The fight for LGBT liberation has been a lengthy one that continues now, with Black and Brown trans women leading early acts of protest and resistance.
Pride acts as a reminder to every one of the atrocities and struggles LGBT people have faced throughout history (even more so for those who are Black, Indigenous, and people of color).
Check out this website for a more in-depth look into Pride’s history.
What Does It Mean to Be LGBTQIA+?
LGBTQIA+ is an initialism standing for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, Intersex, and Asexual.
Other members of the queer community whose identities aren’t necessarily reflected by these letters are denoted by the “plus.”
Other varieties, on the other hand, do occur.
In Canada, the term 2SLGBTQ+ commonly means Indigenous two-spirit persons.
How to Use Social Media to Celebrate Pride Month
Pride Month isn’t the only time a brand should acknowledge the LGBTQ community on social media.
In reality, brands should devote money and marketing resources to visible representation in June…in addition to efforts year-round.
Do you include queer people in your marketing campaigns beyond Pride?
Do you have internal policies in place to ensure queer people from all backgrounds feel safe and welcome at your workplace?
All of these are questions to think about before celebrating Pride on social media.
When it comes time to plan a Pride campaign, keep the following suggestions in mind:
- Educate Yourself and Your Community
- Year-round Collaboration with LGBTQIA+ Creators
- Boost Queer-Serving Organizations
Tips to Use Social Media to Celebrate Pride Month #1: Educate yourself and your community.
Marketers are gatekeepers with tremendous power and influence, and they use marketing to educate, advocate, and raise awareness.
However, those who make marketing decisions frequently do so based on what reflects their own identity.
As a result, it’s critical that you and your team are educated on the unique struggles that the queer community faces in order to effectively advocate through your content.
Furthermore, “passing the mic” to a queer person to share their experience and educate your audience is a chance to go a step further.
However, sharing personal experiences can be difficult. So, make sure to adequately compensate the queer people you work with for their time, energy, and labor.
Tips to Use Social Media to Celebrate Pride Month #2: Work with LGBTQIA+ Creators Year-round
It is critical for brands to recognize the intersectional identities that exist within the queer community.
Working with diverse creators allows your brand to better reflect the world we live in while also demonstrating your commitment to amplifying marginalized voices beyond what may be considered more “palatable.”
Every creator brings their own experience and perspective to the table. This adds additional layers of understanding and value for your audience.
Here are 10 inspiring LGBTQIA+ influencers to follow, work with, and learn from:
- Jamie of @justjamiep: Jamie is a TikTok content creator, on-air fashion expert, and trans activist who has over 220K followers.
- Kairyn Potts of@ohkairyn: Kairyn is a two-spirit content creator and Nakota Sioux Nation member. He uses his platform to educate others about his culture and to raise awareness of Indigenous issues.
- Kayla Logan of @kaylaloganblog: Kayla is a plus-size, body-positive creator who focuses on honest conversations about mental health, fat liberation, fashion, and self-esteem.
- Dexter Mayfield of @dexrated: Dexter is a plus-size model and dancer who has worked with Jennifer Lopez, Katy Perry, and Taylor Swift, among others. He also serves as a judge on the reality television dance show Come Dance with Me.
- Krystian of @krystian_gabrielle: Krystian is a wife and mother of two who documents her daily life as a Black woman and member of an LGBTQIA+ family.
- Owin Pierson of @owinpierson: Owin is a mental health and AAPI creator who shares travel snippets, as well as conversations and information about the LGBTQIA+ community.
- Myla of @pradaolic: Myla is a model, artist, and digital creator who regularly shares makeup looks in her signature “ethereal” style.
- Megan of @msgigggles: Megan is a plus-size, queer, mixed Latina content creator who focuses on food, fashion, and fat activism.
- Meg of @megemikoart: Meg is a transgender Asian-American artist and activist who uses their platform to educate others about the queer community.
- Thaddeus of @hippypotter: Thaddeus is a model and illustrator who uses his platform to uplift and inspire others through “Hippy-designed” affirmations and captions.
TIP: When looking for influencer partners, don’t limit yourself to those whose identities are the most “socially accepted”. For example, white, cis-gender, average size, and so on.
Tips to Use Social Media to Celebrate Pride Month #3: Amplify Queer-serving Organizations
Use your brand’s influence to promote the messaging and work of nonprofit organizations that support the LGBTQIA+ community.
You can accomplish this in a variety of ways:
- Spreading the word about the brand on social media
- Donating funds to assist the organization in carrying out its mission
- Inquire with the organization about how you can best help them, whether through pro bono work, mentorship opportunities, volunteering your time, etc.
On social media, here are three queer-supporting organizations to follow and support:
- Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN): The Ontario HIV Treatment Network is a non-profit organization dedicated to “improving the health and lives of people living with and at risk of HIV through the use of data and evidence to drive change.”
- Rainbow Railroad: Rainbow Railroad is a global non-profit organization dedicated to “assisting LGBTQI+ people who are facing persecution because of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or sex characteristics.”
- 2 Spirits in Motion Society (2SiMS): The mission of the 2 Spirits in Motion Society is to “create, sustain, and strengthen a safe and supportive environment for 2 Spirit people to express themselves through cultural ways of knowing and being about gender and sexuality.”
Social Media for Pride: Dos and Don’ts
When planning your Pride content calendar (or creating content for the queer community in general), keep the following checklist in mind:
Do:
- Educate yourself and your team on the importance of Pride so that your allyship doesn’t seem like insincere.
- Understand and use the proper pronouns (and if you don’t, ask).
- Ensure that the content is intersectional and reflects the range of diversity found in the LGBTQIA+ community.
- Use the Progress Pride Flag to denote and represent marginalized communities of color and trans people.
- Throughout the year, demonstrate a commitment to genuine allyship.
- Pass the mic around to members of the community.
Don’t:
- Change only your brand’s social media icons/logo to rainbow colors.
- Refuse to give in in the face of adversity or hateful comments. LGBTQIA+ people do not have that luxury in their daily lives.
- Make use of community stereotypes. This only serves to reinforce negative stereotypes of LGBTQIA+ people.
- Use the month solely for the purpose of selling a product.
In the End
Celebrating Pride Month on social media entails more than just one post in June.
It begins with your internal practices and progresses. This progresses are how you include, portray, and collaborate with the LGBTQIA+ community in your marketing efforts.
Their perspectives and voices are unique and invaluable, reflecting a range of lived experiences that should be heard all year.
Don’t know how to write good captions on Instagram? This article will be helpful for you.