Profiting off of Protest: The Commodification of Queer Rights

Lela Smith

April 23rd, 2023

Profiting off of Protest: The Commodification of Queer Rights

Though you’d have trouble finding her in most modern history books, Marsha P. Johnson is regarded as a legendary activist by many in the queer community. Best known for her involvement in the infamous Stonewall riots in June of 1969, a series of spontaneous protests that marked the beginning of the gay rights movement, Marsha is considered to be one of the pioneers of the gay rights movement. The celebration of June as LGBTQ pride month actually began as a way to commemorate the anniversary of the original Stonewall protests.

Despite its origins, few would describe modern pride month celebrations as “riots” of any kind. After all, the original pride movement wasn’t fighting for the acceptance of gay people; it was fighting for their survival. In 1969, pride was about rallies, protests, and throwing bricks at crooked cops–but 1969 was over fifty years ago. In the decades since the fight for gay rights has made immense progress. Today, pride month is more about parades, flags, and rainbow t-shirts than it is about protests, rallies, and sit-ins. 

It’s wonderful that younger generations of queer folks are able to enjoy pride as the carefree celebration it’s become, but some worry that this “rainbow-ification” of the pride movement has “declawed it” (Broome). Acceptance of the LGBTQ community has led large corporations to attempt to capitalize off of pride month with merchandise and advertising themed around celebrating it, leading many to fear that pride has become so commodified that its lost touch with its roots. This phenomenon–dubbed by critics as “rainbow capitalism”–is the subject of heated debate each June. 

One of the most controversial instances of rainbow capitalism is the 2021 edition of Target’s annual pride collection. The products were relentlessly mocked for being tacky and over the top at best, and a performative, empty gesture at worst. This criticism may seem unwarranted to many. After all, in spite of the collection’s questionable aesthetics, selling a rainbow-colored dog toy is hardly going to undo the decades of progress the gay rights movement has made. 

I can understand this perspective; while the intentions behind Target’s cash grab may not be pure, the products they put out each June are, for the most part, silly and harmless. However, there was one item in Target’s 2021 pride collection that brought me pause and forced me to consider the larger ramifications of the commodification of pride. That item–a graphic t-shirt featuring an authentic photograph from the early days of the pride movement–brings us back to the work of Marsha P. Johnson.

Marsha P. Johnson wasn’t just your run-of-the-mill protestor; she was a radical and passionate activist. The Stonewall riots, after all, were “riots” for a reason. Following a police raid on a local gay bar, neighbors and patrons of the bar were forced to watch as their friends and loved ones were manhandled into the back of police cars, beaten into submission, and even stripped to check if they were “violating the state’s gender appropriate clothing statute” (History.com). Fed up with the constant harassment they faced, it didn’t take long for the crowd to fight back.

Marsha P. Johnson, a black transgender woman plagued by poverty and homelessness for most of her life, was more familiar with that harassment than most. The details of Stonewall have been lost to time, so it’s unclear who exactly threw the first punch that night. What is clear, however, is that Marsha was there and on the front lines. One account claims she was the first among the crowd to lash out against the cops, shattering the window of a police car and inspiring her fellow bystanders to follow suit (Boomer). 

Marsha P. Johnson was known as a kind and gentle soul in the local queer community, someone who would give the shirt off her back to help someone in need–but when fighting for your life, there is no room for gentleness. After Stonewall, she spent the next two decades fighting tooth and nail for the rights of herself and her community. She attended countless rallies, sit-ins, and protests, and was arrested over a hundred times in the process. This legacy of courage, generosity, and extreme action when necessary has made her a symbol of radical queer activism in the modern queer community.

I feel it’s important to know the extremes Marsha went to, and her legacy within the community, to understand why Target’s Marsha P. Johnson t-shirt–which features an image of the queer icon holding a “power to the people” protest sign–felt like such a slap in the face to me. While rainbow capitalism may seem harmless on the surface, this misuse of Marsha’s image represents one of the core issues with corporations’ involvement in pride. 

There’s something more than a little sickening about Target commodifying the face of a legendary queer activist in order to turn a quick profit. There is a time and place to celebrate Marsha’s accomplishments, and I would argue on a clothing rack next to a sweatshirt with a rainbow-colored dog isn’t it. Selling fun rainbow jewelry and pride-themed lawn signs is one thing, but profiting off the image of a legendary trans activist–especially one who’s no longer alive to give or deny you permission to use their image–is something else entirely. Target isn’t just appealing to gay consumers here: They’re co-opting queer history, and odds are they’re making big money doing it.

It’s worth mentioning that to accompany the release of its pride collection every June, Target makes a donation to GLSEN, a charity that aims to make “create affirming, accessible” spaces for queer youth” (Target). It’s also worth mentioning that in 2021, this donation was $100,000–a big number to you and me, certainly, but no more than chump change to an industry giant like Target. Given the purchasing power of the LGBTQ community–an estimated $3.7 trillion globally–it’s safe to assume that that $100,000 donation was barely a fraction of a fraction of the profits they raked in that June.

This is another commonly heard critique of rainbow capitalism. While corporations promote themselves as being accepting and tolerant during pride month, in reality, their actual support for the queer community is minuscule in comparison to the profit they stand to make. Even when brands do make a tangible effort to be inclusive, that effort often disappears as soon as pride month ends on July 1st. 

This is another trap Target has fallen into in the past–as a part of their 2022 pride collection, the brand began selling chest binders, an undershirt often worn by transgender men and non-binary people to flatten their chest and appear more masculine. While it’s nice that Target made these items more accessible to trans people who needed them, they weren’t available for very long–once pride month ended, the binders were gone with the rest of the pride collection. If Target wanted to show support for their trans customers by carrying these items, why not do so year round? In discontinuing the product at the end of June, Target sends the message that they’re willing to publicly support the queer community–as long as it’s a trend for them to do so.

Defenders of rainbow capitalism would say that acceptance is acceptance, no matter how performative it may be. Washington Post columnist Brian Broome argues we should be appreciative of any support allies are willing to give the LGBTQ community, “however they want to give it.” Younger generations of queer folks, Broome argues, don’t understand how good they have it–he claims brands’ co-opting of the pride movement is a sign of “how positively normal it is to be gay” these days.

While I understand Broome’s point of view, I have to disagree that LGBTQ people are obligated to be appreciative of the bare minimum amount of support. Many companies don’t even make a donation to accompany their yearly pride merchandise–they just slap a rainbow on a t-shirt and rake in the cash. In cases like these, the “support” we’re told to be grateful for amounts to little more than acknowledging that gay people exist. And while it’s true that this kind of visibility was unthinkable back in Marsha P. Johnson’s day, that doesn’t make it revolutionary today. Tolerating gay people should be considered the bare minimum–to truly be allies, individuals and corporations have to contribute to the ongoing fight for equality. 

While it’s fantastic that LGBTQ pride is able to be celebrated openly and proudly in the modern age, we can’t let our celebrations become so tainted by capitalistic greed that we forget pride’s original purpose. When activists such as Silvia Rivera, Stormé DeLarverie, and yes, Marsha P. Johnson, kickstarted the pride movement on that fateful day in 1969, they were fighting for a better tomorrow. While we’ve reached a brighter future than the Stonewall protesters likely ever thought possible, we can’t rest on our laurels just yet. 

A record 417 anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced in state legislatures since 2023 began–clearly, homophobia and transphobia are still alive and well (Choi). When corporations like Target use activist leaders and imagery on keychains and t-shirts, it implies that the rioutous spirit they represent is no longer needed. On the contrary, however, a record 417 anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced into state legislatures over the country since the start of 2023–clearly, homophobia and transphobia are still alive and well (Choi). The fight that started fifty years ago is far from over. As we continue that fight, it’s vital that we demand corporations that attempt to capitalize off pride to a higher standard. We need more than empty promises and rainbow lawn gnomes every June–we need action, and we need it year-round. It’s time these businesses remember: Pride is about protest, not profit.

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Works Cited

Boomer, Lee. “Life Story: Marsha P. Johnson.” Women & the American Story, 2020, wams.nyhistory.org/growth-and-turmoil/growing-tensions/marsha-p-johnson/.

Broome, Brian. “Opinion | This Pride Month, I’m Embracing “Rainbow Capitalism.”” Washington Post, 6 June 2022, www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/06/06/pride-month-rainbow-capitalism-acceptance/.

Choi, Annette. “Record Number of Anti-LGBTQ Bills Have Been Introduced This Year | CNN Politics.” CNN, 6 Apr. 2023, www.cnn.com/2023/04/06/politics/anti-lgbtq-plus-state-bill-rights-dg/index.html.

Davies, Diana. “Marsha P. Johnson Pickets Bellevue Hospital to Protest Treatment of Street People and Gays.” NYPL Digital Collections, 1970, digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e3-5fa8-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99.

Desjardins, Lisa. “Rainbow Capitalism Raises Questions about Corporate Commitments and Pride Month’s Purpose.” PBS NewsHour, 30 June 2021, www.pbs.org/newshour/show/rainbow-capitalism-raises-questions-about-corporate-commitments-and-pride-months-purpose.

Dupere, Katie. ““Cringe-Worthy” Pride Merch on Walmart Marketplace Gets Roasted in Viral TikTok Reviews.” Footwear News, 24 May 2022, footwearnews.com/2022/focus/retail/walmart-pride-2022-merchandise-viral-tiktok-1203290818/.

—. “Target’s Pride Collection Goes Viral with Hilarious Reviews on TikTok.” Footwear News, 25 May 2022, footwearnews.com/2022/focus/retail/target-pride-collection-2022-release-info-reviews-1203290933/. Accessed 20 Apr. 2023.

Ellison, Joy. “Rainbow Rant: A Review of the Target Pride Collection.” Columbus Monthly, 8 June 2021, www.columbusmonthly.com/story/entertainment/human-interest/2021/06/08/rainbow-rant-review-target-pride-collection/7596437002/. Accessed 20 Apr. 2023.

History.com Editors. “Stonewall Riots.” HISTORY, A&E Television Networks, 31 May 2017, www.history.com/topics/gay-rights/the-stonewall-riots.

Olsen, Billie. “What Is Rainbow Capitalism and Why Is It Harmful?” LGBTQ and ALL, 8 June 2021, www.lgbtqandall.com/what-is-rainbow-capitalism-and-why-is-it-harmful/.

Rindner, Grant. “No One Knows Who Started the Stonewall Rebellion, but These Leaders Were Key.” Oprah Daily, 13 May 2021, www.oprahdaily.com/life/a36319161/stonewall-riot-leaders/.

Target. “Take Pride! Here’s How Target’s Recognizing Pride Month.” Target Corporate, 2 June 2021, corporate.target.com/article/2021/06/pride.