Check out 16 Return-To-Work Programs In India For Ambitious Women Like You!
Pride month is not a marketing opportunity, it's about awareness and bringing change. Here are 5 mistakes corporates make during pride month.
Rainbow washing has been an issue that the LGBTQIA+ community has faced in their workplace. Here are 5 mistakes corporates make during Pride Month.
What Is Rainbow Washing?
The practice of when companies use rainbow colours on their brand logos, pride-related symbols and images on their products, and overnight turn their websites to display their support for the LGBTQIA+ community.
Sadly, every pride month, multiple companies and brands see the month as a box that needs to be ticked and get away by hosting the pride colours as a show of support without reflecting on why the pride month is celebrated and observed.
Pride Month is not just a marketing opportunity to capitalize on the rainbow flag and attract attention. It is not a chance to simply ride the wave of social acceptance without making meaningful changes.
So what are the mistakes corporates make during Pride Month?
Let’s address what Pride Month truly represents in detail, shall we?
Pride Month is not only about changing your logos or adding rainbow colours to your products. Superficial displays of support do not create real change or address the challenges faced by the LGBTQ+ community.
Pride Month is not about using LGBTQ+ individuals as props for your marketing campaigns. Token representation only perpetuates stereotypes and fails to address the systemic issues that LGBTQ+ individuals face.
Pride Month is not the only time to show support for the LGBTQ+ community. Equality and inclusivity should be embraced every day of the year. Make an ongoing commitment to creating an inclusive environment within your organization.
Pride Month is not a race for corporations to see who can generate the most attention or profit. It’s about recognizing the achievements and contributions of the LGBTQ+ community and taking action to dismantle discrimination and prejudice.
Pride Month is not an opportunity to ignore the ongoing challenges faced by the LGBTQ+ community. Use this time to educate yourself, engage in meaningful conversations, and actively work towards dismantling discriminatory practices.
Instead of treating Pride Month as a marketing gimmick.
Let’s elaborate on the points further:
Listen to the LGBTQ+ community and understand their needs and concerns so that easier communication and understanding between management and employees.
Advocate for LGBTQ+ rights within your organization and in society, because when companies fight for the right of their employees, change can happen faster.
Implement policies that protect LGBTQ+ employees from discrimination. Discrimination only stops when strict policies and rules discourage intolerant practices by setting examples.
Support LGBTQ+ organizations financially and through partnerships. Collaborate with various NGOs or research institutions that work with the various branches of the LGBTQIA+ community to benefit from their learnings.
Foster an inclusive workplace culture where everyone feels safe and valued. Ideas are beautiful, it is execution of the thought and practising the ideas that bring change.
Make gender-neutral facilities available in your office spaces. Gender-neutral facilities are not limited to bathroom usage. From common rooms to the gym, gender plays an important role
Ensure the community is represented in your workforce, leadership, and boardroom. Until and unless we have visible changemakers in leadership roles, a community cannot be fully supported. Hence, support for representation with acceptance.
Let’s move beyond performative support and make real progress toward equality.
Together, we can create a world where everyone is celebrated and respected, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Recommended read
This article was first published on LinkedIn. We have republished the article with a few editorial changes, on Women’s Web, with permission from author Abhinav Shikhar.
Artísanté chocolates – an EXCLUSIVE range of fine gourmet chocolates – are #CelebratingTheRainbow with us this year – read all the posts here. The first 10 submissions selected by our editors as featured entries get a gift coupon of Rs. 1,000 each from Artísanté. You can also get a FLAT 20% discount on purchasing from Artísanté: Use discount code PRIDE20.
Do you have a workplace story as rainbow sheep? Let us know!
Image source: Via fezkes, Free and edited on CanvaPro
read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
Please enter your email address