Beyond Rainbow Washing: Why Supporting Local LGBTQ+ Owned Businesses Is Essential

As our society continues to evolve and become more accepting of the LGBTQ+ community, it's crucial to show our support for local LGBTQ+ owned businesses. These businesses not only provide unique products and services for LGBTQ+ members, but they also represent an essential part of our community. One of the reasons it's so vital to support local LGBTQ+ owned businesses is that they often face discrimination and barriers to success that non-LGBTQ+ owned businesses do not. This can include difficulty finding funding and loans, and outright discrimination from customers or landlords.

By supporting these businesses, we can help to combat these barriers and create a more inclusive and equitable economy for the LGBTQ+ community. In addition, supporting local businesses helps to create a strong sense of community among LGBTQ+ members. When we shop at a local LGBTQ+ owned business, we're not only supporting that business, but also the entire community that it serves. This can help to create a more supportive and welcoming environment for LGBTQ+ people. Another reason to support local LGBTQ+ owned businesses is the issue of fast fashion. Fast fashion harms the workers who produce the clothing and the environment by contributing to overproduction and the use of non-renewable resources.

Many local LGBTQ+ owned businesses focus on sustainable and ethical production practices, which is a great way to support both the LGBTQ+ community and the environment. It's important to note that not all companies that claim to support the LGBTQ+ community are genuinely doing so. Some corporations engage in "rainbow washing," using LGBTQ+ themes and imagery to sell products without actually supporting the community. By supporting local LGBTQ+ owned businesses, we can ensure that our money is going directly to support members of the community, rather than to corporations that are simply trying to profit off of LGBTQ+ culture.

In conclusion, supporting local LGBTQ+ owned businesses is a crucial way to support the LGBTQ+ community and promote an inclusive and equitable economy. By shopping at these businesses, we can help to combat discrimination and barriers to success, create a sense of community, support sustainable production practices, and ensure that our money is going directly to support LGBTQ+ members.