Pride Month Programming Guide
5 Inclusive Ways to Celebrate Pride Month at Work
Written by Kaela Sosa and Susie Silver
Pride Month – also known as Gay Pride, LGBT Pride, or LGBTQ+ Pride – is celebrated throughout the world. Celebrations include pride parades, marches, art exhibits, concerts, picnics, workshops, and street parties. Frequently, these celebrations are seen as bold, exuberant, and joyful, offering all people an opportunity to participate by dressing up, flying flags, creating posters, and more.
June is Pride Month in the United States, Britain, Australia, and Brazil. In Canada, Pride events are held throughout the summer to amplify LGBTQ+ voices, remember LGBTQ+ history, support LGBTQ+ rights, and honor LGBTQ+ culture.
Today, Pride Month is arguably the most emblematic and most visible diversity celebration of the year, with hundreds of thousands of people showing up to celebrate in cities across the globe. Pride festivals in New York and São Paulo, for instance, attract crowds of more than 2 million people every year, with equally impressive festivals in San Francisco, London, Madrid, Paris, Taipei, Montreal, Johannesburg, Sydney, Tel Aviv, and Mexico City.
Given the prominence of Pride celebrations throughout the world, it’s important that your organization takes time to recognize the historical marginalization of the LGBTQ+ community, the contributions of LGBTQ+ employees, and the importance of equity in the workplace and society at large.
In the spirit of inclusion, everyone in your organization should be invited and encouraged to participate. Also remember, it shouldn’t be the sole responsibility of LGBTQ+ employees to organize their own recognition, and you’ll find that it’s transformative to have employees of every background participating in and learning during Pride Month. At the same time, you should not assume that someone wants to be involved simply because of their sexuality or gender identity.
The guide below will provide you with some tips and ideas for creating your own Pride Month Programming.
Communicate
It’s important to communicate your recognition and celebration of Pride Month, both internally and externally. Internally, dedicate some team stand-up time to recognize LGBTQ+ change makers. Start a Slack channel to share LGBTQ+ related news articles throughout the month. Consider sending a special edition internal newsletter highlighting the actions your company will take in the next month, year, and/or 5 years, to become more LGBTQ+ inclusive.
But take note: if your company isn’t already engaging in ongoing efforts around diversity, equity, and inclusion, your Pride celebration may appear hollow or performative; this is known as rainbow-washing. Make sure the actions you take this month are a part of your larger commitment to DEI and ingrained in your company’s overarching mission, vision, and values.
Externally, celebrate Pride Month by highlighting your LGBTQ+ employees on social media (with their permission, of course), sharing your internal policies regarding anti-discrimination, and recognizing the LGBTQ+ innovators and disruptors who have shaped your industry. For example, Lynn Conway, a famed pioneer of microelectronics chip design, Sara Josephine Baker, the public health physician, or Alan Turing, the famed mathematician and computer scientist.
Educate
Educate your team and your audience throughout this month. Take cues from the suggestions above and release an LGBTQ+ innovators series relevant to your field of work. Bring in a speaker for your team or consider hosting a Pride event open to both your clients and the public. Share resources to help your team learn more, and if your organization has a Pride-related employee resource group (ERG), this is a great time to highlight their programming. Encourage employees to read, listen, and watch – to seek out books, movies, podcasts, radio shows, documentaries, and more, pertaining to the LGBTQ+ experience.
Serve/Donate
Pride Month is a great time to consider donating your time, money, or knowledge to the LGBTQ+ community. Throughout San Francisco and the surrounding area, the Turn Out organization is a wonderful resource for matching “volunteers and nonprofits with resources, trainings, and support to effect high-impact service for LGBTQ+ causes.” Based in Toronto, Egale lists community-based organizations across Canada on its Rainbow Action Hub, and The Trevor Project offers remote volunteer options. Consider making annual or even monthly donations to OutRight Action International, The Marsha P. Johnson Institute, the Human Rights Campaign, or choose a local advocacy group to support.
Expand Your Network
Make an effort to expand your organization’s impact and network by partnering with diverse suppliers, local universities, and organizations that support a diverse talent pipeline. Seeking diverse suppliers is a way to show ongoing support for LGBTQ+ communities. A supplier diversity commitment also benefits your company by introducing new products, services, and solutions while driving competition between existing and potential vendors.
Partnerships with diverse suppliers give your business a competitive advantage, and LGBTQ+ Chambers of Commerce across the world can be valuable resources to find qualified companies. U.S. organizations should look for the Certified LGBTBE® designation, which companies can achieve through the NGLCC (National LGBT Chamber of Commerce), an exclusive, third-party certification body which verifies that eligible businesses are majority-owned by LGBTQ+ individuals. In Canada, LGBT Business Enterprises are reviewed and certified by the Canadian Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (CGLCC).
Collaborate
One of the most impactful ways to foster inclusion is by seeking out and listening to the perspectives and opinions of those you are trying to include. Reach out to LGBTQ+ leaders within your organization to seek their input on how they would like their identities and communities to be recognized during Pride Month and beyond. If your organization has a Pride ERG (Employee Resource Group), make sure that they have space this month to share relevant information and programming.
Leveraging Pride Month to build understanding and awareness about LGBTQ+ identities, struggles, accomplishments, and experiences offers a valuable opportunity for companies to cultivate inclusion and belonging. Organizations that invest their resources in celebrating Pride Month and supporting diverse identities throughout the year send a clear message to their employees and customers that they care about diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Download the Entire Guidebook
This excerpt was taken from our guidebook, “The Pride Month Programming Guide.” To learn more about Pride Month and explore other ways to celebrate, download the entire guidebook in English below.
