Beyond the Rainbow Glitter Parade: Intersection of #BlackLivesMatter and Pride
Originally posted as a guest blogger for Knack Collective found HERE
June 2020 will go down in history. There is no doubt about it. The 51st anniversary of Pride fell when the country is reeling from the murder of George Floyd at the hands of a white policeman, bringing a new urgency to the Black Lives Matter movement. Coupled with this outpouring of outrage and grief, this year’s Pride celebrations had to be held virtually almost everywhere due to COVID-19. The parades and exuberance that usually accompany the day of “love is love” had to be reimagined in the face of so much suffering.
As a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practitioner, it’s been a whiplash, whirlwind sh*t storm watching how brands and individuals are responding. In my lived experience as an adopted immigrant, queer, womxn of color, who has experienced poverty twice in my childhood (once while living in a South Korean orphanage and again during the 1980s farm crisis, when our family lost everything) is nothing compared to the cultural trauma my friends and colleagues in the Black and Indigenous community have been experiencing for centuries.
The rise of my anger watching some of the corporate machines trying to figure out how to respond to the Black Lives Matter outcry during the month of Pride, was unexpected. I’ve become almost desensitized to Pride being used and corporatized every year. However, this year, as I watch people agonize over whether to write a letter response, put a black square on their social or integrate a rainbow flag into their logo because how their brand might look to the world, I wanted to shake them and say, “If that’s what you’re worried about, you are worried about the wrong things!”
I decided to channel this energy by turning to one of my clients—Knack Collective, a business that has built with DEI in mind from the ground up. I wanted to get another perspective on the intersection of Black Lives Matter and Pride, so I interviewed Mariah Lincoln, Co-Founder and COO, and Toy Norwood, Director of Content.
Kimfer:
Tell me a little bit about who you are and why you said “yes” to this interview about the way that Black Lives Matter and Pride are intersecting right now.
Mariah:
I’m a lesbian, activist, strategist, womxn, and I also happen to be the co-founder of House of Knack and its affiliated companies. My family has deeply seated roots in social justice and advocacy work and being committed to that path is what led me to start this company with Catherine Bye. The intent of the work that we do extends beyond marketing or office leasing. We take an active stance by centering on DEI in business strategy and client education in addition to executing campaigns. Talking about intersectionality is critical in this work we do. Toy?
Toy:
I took this position as Content Director of Knack Collective because it is a womxn-owned business full of intelligent ladies. I have always wanted to be in a position to help other womxn in the way that womxn have helped me. I’m a Gen X, African-American womxn from historic Tuskegee, Alabama. Tuskegee was all-Black when I grew up, so I was never really exposed much to other races and nationalities when I was young. Living in the middle of the Bible Belt, I also had little exposure to the LGBTQIA community. Since my immediate family has always been a little older than those of my peers, I learned a lot about what it has historically meant to be Black in the Deep South. From being direct descendants of slaves to surviving the Jim Crow era, I’ve heard it all, and these stories shaped my perspective on race relations.
As an empath, I have always been able to take the struggles of African Americans and the injustices they have endured and apply it to other groups. When I look at the transgender community or immigrants now, I see history repeating itself in a lot of ways. I slowly moved away from the South so I could be exposed to other people’s plights and better support them. I think this conversation about intersectionality is important so we can understand and find meaningful ways to help each other.
Kimfer:
What are your thoughts and feelings about how Pride has intersected with the protests in the aftermath of the brutal killing of George Floyd? Like you, I don’t think that we have to put Pride on the back burner and just focus on Black Lives Matter. It’s not one or the other.
Mariah:
THESE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN INTERSECTIONAL ISSUES. I LOVE WHAT MARSHA P. JOHNSON SAID: “NO PRIDE FOR SOME OF US UNTIL THERE IS JUSTICE FOR ALL OF US.” WE ARE SO MUCH STRONGER AS A UNITED FRONT.
Mariah Lincoln
Here’s the thing. I love pride. I love celebration. And we as a [queer] people love a rainbow glitter parade. The initial thought of that being a virtual event felt wrong. It felt counter-intuitive to the true notion of what pride is about. BUT, then I started to really reflect on what I meant when I said “what pride is really about” And I was like, oh honey…THIS is what pride is about. The moment that we’re having right now is why it all started. It was a riot. It was a riot started by Black trans womxn, at that.
The reflection gave me an opportunity to dig in a little bit more as to what has happened with Pride. It’s been commercialized. It’s become a party-heavy, branded affair where corporations throw up a rainbow logo and call it a day. It’s detracted from the original intent, which was to re-orient and center around our unfinished business. “What are our demands? What still needs to be done? Let’s make sure we prioritize, vocalize and come together as a community to make sure that those things are voiced”. Pride is radical and so is the Black Lives Matter Movement. It is our responsibility to show up. We have to prioritize those in our community who are the most vulnerable. Black trans womxn are the most effected and to not have them centred completely deviates from the true intentions.
So, I had my moment, like, “but all the rainbows! All the glitter, all the fun!”, but now I am refocused on what this moment means and how we can step up for our Black community—who need us so much right now.
Toy:
As an ally, I’m fairly new to the LGBTQIA+ community, but I’ve always empathized with it because there is so much alignment between their struggles and the struggles that African Americans face. Our God-given rights have always been challenged and blocked, just because of the color of our skin. Keeping that in mind, I’ve done my best to learn more about the LGBTQIA+ community’s obstacles and find ways to be supportive of them.
Now, it is coming full circle. I’m very moved to see the LGBTQIA+ community supporting the Black community right now. It feels very genuine. It doesn’t feel like they are just waving flags or joining marches. It has always been in their roots, so their support feels meaningful.
Mariah:
If you look back at the history of Pride, it started with a revolt against police brutality and the demand for justice and equality. In that way, these have always been intersectional issues. I love what Marsha P. Johnson said: “No pride for some of us until there is justice for all of us.” We are so much stronger as a united front. But this also means that we have to center our efforts around the most marginalized communities when they need it.
Toy:
IT ISN’T A QUESTION OF WHETHER BLACK LIVES MATTER AND PRIDE CAN CO-EXIST. THEY HAVE TO CO-EXIST. [THIS YEAR] MANY PRIDE PARADES CONVERTED TO BLACK LIVES MATTER, WHICH MAKES SENSE. IT IS THE COMMUNITY SAYING, “THIS IS HOW WE ARE PRIORITIZING OUR ENERGY RIGHT NOW, REGARDLESS OF WHAT MONTH IT IS.”
Mariah Lincoln
The painful reason that our communities intersect so much on these issues is that we have been seen and treated in the past as “throwaway groups.” We have endured police brutality for years—it’s nothing new for us. My best friend recalls how his grandmother, who worked as a maid in his hometown, taught him to call all white people “sir” and “ma’am” to stay out of harm’s way. As a child, she had witnessed a male family member being snatched from his home by a group of white men and lynched for (supposedly) looking in the direction of a white girl. Considering this woman is still alive and in her 80s, the notion of a legal system that supports the lynching of African-American men is not a historically distant one.
If you look at the LGBTQIA+ community, and especially at the situation that Black and Latinx trans people find themselves in, these are groups that can have the crap beat out of them or killed and the system does not seem to care. That’s what I mean by “throwaway groups.” If something happens to them, there is a sense of, “Well, that’s one less. We don’t have to deal with them anymore.”
Mariah:
Historically, intersectionality has not been a priority. We tend to focus on the most generalized identity of marginalized populations. Only in the last three to five years have we seen the language of intersectionality used more broadly as we focus on equality and justice. If you focus your demands on those with the greatest level of obstacles, you will actually serve a broader set of people.
Toy:
I don’t know if you have seen reference to #AllBlackLivesMatter, which some people say is detracting from Black Lives Matter (though to Mariah’s point, I don’t believe that’s true). It’s a shame that it should have to come to Black Lives Matter at all—to have to remind the world that our lives are worthy. And now subgroups are having to do that as well.
Kimfer:
Returning to the issue of the corporatization of Black Lives Matter and Pride Month, and to companies who get behind social justice because it makes them look good, June 2020 was a challenging month for inauthentic corporate “supporters.” I saw a hilarious meme of a profusely sweating man with the caption, “The corporate marketing exec trying to decide if they should use rainbow or black on their logo this month.” It is funny because it is so true.
Mariah:
I’m really glad you asked this question. I believe it is our responsibility as an agency to be a partner to our clients. That means we are sharing our opinions, we are educating, and we are providing alternate perspectives to guide them to the best decisions possible. If the debate or concern is around which flag to fly or which logo to post, we haven’t done our job. To me, that means that you are ultimately trying to decide who, as a consumer, has more worth and weight.
We aren’t having that. We are calling companies out. What companies need to focus on right now is, “How can I examine my business strategy? How is my business strategy aligning to the demands of these communities?” Because we have failed them in the past, and we need to make sure we are not just exploiting or placating a movement. What companies actually need to do to is engage in internal reflection. To change the way they hire. To change the way they look at marketing and reaching different communities and their needs.
Kimfer:
I think that’s spot on. If you are worried about which flag to fly, you are worried about the wrong thing. So can both causes co-exist?
Toy:
I think that if you pay attention to “the streets,” the intersection is organically happening. It’s not corporate-led; people saw the need and stepped in. People aren’t hyper-focused on the feel-good celebration of Pride with all the glitter. They see there are other pressing issues to rally around right now.
As far as corporations are concerned, it’s less about what you are saying and more about what you are doing. How are you supporting the people who work for you? How are you supporting your customers, partners, and clients? Everything else will fall into place if your approach is authentic.
Mariah:
It isn’t a question of whether Black Lives Matter and Pride can co-exist. They have to co-exist. What we saw this year is that many Pride parades converted to Black Lives Matter, which makes sense. It is the community saying, “This is how we are prioritizing our energy right now, regardless of what month it is.”
Kimfer:
Toy mentioned how within Black Lives Matter, many are also fighting for All Black Lives Matter in support of the Black queer community, and especially the Black trans community. Why do you think this needs to be specified?
Mariah:
Eighty percent of all transgender deaths are Black transgender individuals. Eighty-seven percent of those are Black trans womxn. So, my stance is we cannot prioritize rage over the deaths of Black men and ignore, or in some instances, encourage, the deaths of Black trans womxn. Again, to make systemic change for the broadest set of individuals, you have to start from the most marginalized. I will continue to leverage my privilege, position, and economic power to demand that All Black Lives Matter.
Toy:
I SHOULDN’T HAVE TO TELL SOMEONE THAT MY LIFE MATTERS. IT SHOULD BE UNDERSTOOD, BUT CLEARLY, IT’S NOT.
Toy Norwood
It frustrates me that it has to be said. I’m not the type of person with the sign in my yard. I shouldn’t have to tell someone that my life matters. It should be understood, but clearly, it’s not. Nor do I feel that LGBTQIA+ people should have to “come out.” I didn’t have to come out because I’m straight. It’s just so unnecessary.
Either no one is listening, or people are trying to stifle our voices. It shouldn’t be that way. I’m trying to be hopeful, and I think my hope comes from the fact that other marginalized groups are on the front lines with us.
Kimfer:
Being leaders in an organization, what do you believe is your responsibility to social justice? Do you keep your private lives separate from your business lives? How are you able to keep your employees motivated, engaged, and supported through this time, knowing that all these layers come with them to work?
Mariah:
I’m not going to lie, it’s hard. There is a great level of responsibility for me, as a leader, to show up with confidence and encouragement, and to provide a sense of security to our employees. But vulnerability is equally important. They need to know that I am in this fight and in this struggle.
Toy:
AS FAR AS CORPORATIONS ARE CONCERNED, IT’S LESS ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE SAYING AND MORE ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE DOING.
Toy Norwood
I appreciate Knack’s top-down approach. That has helped tremendously. When your leaders avoid topics, it makes everyone else feel they have to avoid it too. For me, Mariah and Catherine hit the nail on the head when the protests began. They approached the African-American employees to see if we were okay and ask how they can support us. It led others to follow suit. My manager set aside time so we could just talk, so she could support me and ask how she could do better as a person. And I did the same with my staff, some of whom said, “I’m just feeling so low right now.” We have to give people the ability to grieve, breathe, and think through things knowing that their managers are supportive of them.
I’ve worked at very conservative companies before, and they didn’t care. I’d overhear hallway chatter like, “Why is this person taking a knee at the football game?” Or, “Yeah, the cops choked that guy to death, but let’s be honest, with his past, he sort of deserved it.” I’d hear these things and cry in my office. The top-down approach makes such a difference. I’ve shared that first check-in note from Mariah and Catherine with some of my friends who really needed to see it, because their own bosses didn’t get it.
Kimfer:
When Donald Trump was elected, I heard a lot of people in organizational leadership say, “We don’t get political in the office, so that’s why we aren’t talking about this.” I remember thinking, “That’s fine. You don’t have to deal with politics, but you do have to deal with your employees and how it has affected them. That doesn’t have anything to do with politics.”
What thoughts do you want to leave for others in your shoes, as leaders and individuals in communities we’ve been talking about?
Mariah:
Take a stance. Don’t just post a modified version of your logo. Actually endeavor to understand what that means and change your business strategy. Hire Black womxn in leadership roles. Understand why that’s important. Understand what intersectionality means to an individual coming into your organization and how their perspective and experience should affect how you make decisions within your company.
Toy:
There’s a level of authenticity that’s necessary, and that requires better understanding. Even if you are not all the way there yet, be considerate about what others are going through. For me, it’s been very helpful to sit back, shut up, listen and learn, immersing myself in different stories. It has helped me become more vulnerable and thoughtful to the people I work with.
Kimfer:
One of the things I say about DEI is that you can brand your company all you want but be ready—because it is the internal people who will call your BS faster than anyone externally. Thank you so much for having this conversation with me. It has allowed me to re-channel my energy and recharge. We all need to #dothework and choose to be authentic allies who take real action to create change where it matters most.
Thanks for reading the interview and here are some resources for you if you want to continue in your allyship learning journey to #dothework. I’m following in the categories of Knack Collective’s Pledge to:
LEARN UP
SPEAK UP
SHOW UP
DONATE
TAKE ACTION
LEARN UP:
Films, Shows, Documentaries, Videos
The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson on Netflix
“The Trans List,” HBO Now
“Passing,” Amazon Prime
“Transmormon,” Vimeo
Books/ Articles
"All Black Lives Matter’: Transgender activists call for intersectionality in the movement
Another Black Man, Tony McDade, Was Shot and Killed by Police Last Week
Black Trans Women Seek More Space in the Movement They Helped Start
Podcasts
Follow
SPEAK UP
Contact your Local, State, and Federal elected officials
SHOW UP
DONATE
TAKE ACTION:
Sign petitions to change the status quo for the Transgender community
Sign petitions to change the status quo for the LGBTQIA community
A New Era of Public Safety: An Advocacy Toolkit for Fair, Safe, and Effective Community Policing from the Obama Foundation
Fighting Police Abuse: A Community Action Manual from the ACLU
Look for local opportunities to get involved through the ACLU
