Long-Standing Sponsors Drop San Francisco Pride

San Francisco Pride, the nonprofit that puts on the annual Pride celebrations and parades in the city each year, has lost five different long-standing sponsors this year. Executive director Suzanne Ford says the total amount of money lost from those sponsors totals $300,000. Some of the brands who pulled their sponsorship include Comcast, Diageo, La Crema, who is owned by Jackson Family Wines, and Anheuser-Busch, the company that owns Bud Light. Ford told KTVU that she is, “very concerned” about the loss of sponsorship and believes that the, “pressure from the federal government” is the reason for the loss instead of their, “lack of funds” reason that was given to her. As we are all aware, the Trump administration has been focusing a lot of its overflowing hate onto the LGBTQ+ community, and after the executive orders that denounce DEIA programs and attempt to erase the existence of trans people, we have seen multiple cases of corporations and organizations complying with the hateful legislation. Ford also told KTVU, “The tone has changed in this country. Businesses already hedge their bets, and I think people who, this isn’t their hard core value of their corporation, maybe they’re rethinking their investment.” It has certainly been disheartening, to say the least, to see so many groups who are meant to serve the people show their true colors after this administration has created a safer place for bigotry and hatred in this country. These companies pulling their sponsorship could set an unsettling example for others to do the same all over the country. In Colorado, Denver Health paused gender-affirming care for people under age 19 in response to one of Trump’s executive orders. It makes one worry what other groups will decide that supporting marginalized people is no longer worth the risk and wonder what business their willing to lose. In 2023, Anheuser-Busch lost a lot of anti-trans business after partnering with trans influencer, Dylan Mulvaney. Yet they chose to pull their Pride sponsorship this year. SF Pride has lost the $300,000 out of the $1.2 million needed to put on the event, but they have not lost hope or motivation to push on with the event. Their website landing page alerts everyone of the sponsorship development, but reminds that Pride is not just a parade but, “a testament to resilience.” They are currently asking for community donations, and while it is unclear what all will be present at this year’s Pride, they ensure that the show will still go on.