AIBU to think adverts like this (from a brand loved by teens) does nothing to help pride and can turn people away

[YetAnotherNewNameAgain]

And gives the wrong impression to what pride was/ is. Was?

It came to my email address and doesn't sit right.

What was once a movement to liberate and protect gays and bisexuals has evidently been co-opted by anyone that wants a way to feel special and different. Ironically these people are indistinguishable from eachother, they're mainly young straight white people that want a trendy label to pretend they're oppressed. Most normal, sane gay/bi people (hello!) keep their distance from this corporate rainbow shitshow because ultimately it's just another way capitalism hijacked a good cause and morphed it into something everyone can relate to to make their brand seem human. These same people that say fuck labels are calling themselves queer every 5 minutes (because they happen to be a man that likes to wear nail polish or something else ridiculously inane and nonconsequential.)

First reply says it better than I ever could.

What was once a movement to liberate and protect gays and bisexuals Has been turned into yet another win for consumerism more like.

I agree, but it's more than that. What was once a space created to be welcoming and safe is now starting to look like the sort of space that I want to protect my teens from (going by this sort of advertising). This is WRONG and makes me sad for what could have been.

Sexuality does not have to mean sex. It's about love as well. (I know I'm sounding like a prude - that's not where I'm coming from)

As innuendos go it's hardly the most offensive advert I've seen. I'm in the 'not-a-big-deal' camp. Teens will either be oblivious and think it's just someone sticking their tongue out in a cheeky way, or have a little giggle.

Hard agree that pride had become commercial...but then money does make the world go round! Hypocritical of companies to chant pride and for example endorse homophobic or transphobic behaviour - then it's a problem. Otherwise I figure we are surrounded by adverts and companies every day, so we kind of need them.

Bedsides if they're not old enough to see a censored version of the word fuck then they shouldn't have an email address!

You're not being prudish, I 100% agree. I also find it disappointing that anything society has declared sex-positive, like kink, porn, etc has been so ingrained in popular LGBT culture now. I don't want to go to pride events because quite frankly drag queens and men in leather gimp suits walking human pups makes me feel the opposite of proud!

These same people that say fuck labels are calling themselves queer every 5 minutes

"Fuck labels" seems a really weird concept from the ideology that brought you pansexuality, demigender, agender, cakegender, etc etc etc.

I work with a lot of people in their 20s and they are obsessed with labelling themselves.

quite frankly drag queens and men in leather gimp suits walking human pups makes me feel the opposite of proud!

Definitely agree.

It's such a shame because Pride parades now seem to be largely just a parade of perverts and fetishism and little to do with lgb. I can't understand at all how people can bare to take kids to most of them tbph.

No, it's about the last place I'd take children these days. Such a shame it has been spoilt.

My teens are very open and wouldn’t bat an eye at this, but sometimes I wish this sort of imagery wasn’t so normalised.

Its just cheap and (let’s be honest) nothing to do with pride, just a bandwagon to make money.

Pride used to mean so much more.

Nailed it.

As you rightly say: it's now white women with blue partially shaved hair who are identifying as a made up sexuality,"genderqueer" whilst holding the hand of a 'girlfriend ' who's probably a mate that they haven't even kissed.

Honestly, and this is not made up, nearly all of the gay people I know hate and cringe at "pride". Most gay couples are just quietly trying to actually live (certainly the ones I know anyway) one gay married man actually complained to his work (official complaint) that their union had spent more money on "pride" then they ever did protecting workers like himself during COVID.

Are we advertising pride to make gay men and women feeling included ? Or are we ignoring their wishes and giving ourselves a great big pat on the back for the virtue signal : that only benefits loud, overweight, hairy blue haired "gender fluid" Zelda ?

What offends you about it?

I think this is probably what happens when you put a 25 year old heterosexual male intern in charge of an ad campaign. I don’t think this says anything about Pride really, but everything about the heterosexual male gaze and consumerism.

Well, I’m glad I gave my AirUp away. I had no idea it was supposed to be so sexy.

This:
”I don’t think this says anything about Pride really, but everything about the heterosexual male gaze and consumerism.”

Its not what pride once was - love and equality.

Its fetish and cheap sex.

And what really offends me? It does nothing to bring people to join the cause. If anything it’s likely to turn people away, which is not what we want.

100% I wonder how many of these straight people in charge of pride campaigns actually listen to the silent majority of actual gay men and women. This is all the 'loudest voice gets heard ' again : and half of the shouty people haven't even got skin in the game.

Again- 100%! And the awful thing is , it's actually the silent majority of actual gay people that will take the hit, through no fault of their own. I hope the pride shouty kink fest (let's face it, that is mostly full of virtue signalling shouty straight people nowadays) gets put in room 101. I think most people can see it for what it is now. Consumerism and marketing very much wants to keep it going though in the hope people will keep buying the rainbow adorned gnomes etc and associated utter tat.

Completely agree. So nice to hear so many sensible voices on this thread.

I think unfortunately sex full stop is now cheapened, both gay sex lives and straight sex lives. It's all "fwb" "hook ups" "ONS,". Sex is very much something related to "love" for me. But I guess I am "old fashioned" (despite being under 40!)

Its promoting harmful stereotypes of homosexuality thought, that all gay people are raging sex lunatics who are always at it

Pride is about accepting and being confident about your sexual orientation, its not 'sexual', so theres no need for innuendos of any sort. Big deal or not.

I think that bandwagon is just another heavy advertising campaign, it has had its fair share, ruining what it was supposed to original represent.

Work currently has this LGBTQIA+ exhibition on (it could just be LGBTQ, it's that dated and out of touch).
Put together totally by straight people - the sound track was dire, full of pop music not even the club mixes. It's so cringe, a total embarrassment.

I don't think the woman in that ad is a raging sex lunatic, do you? It's a fairly mild bit of tongue in cheek innuendo with a tongue sticking out. Nor do I assume she's homosexual. She could be any number of things under the LGBTQ+ umbrella.

And sexual orientation is not sexual? Come off it. Disingenuous. The reason that 'homosexuals' have been persecuted, bullied, harmed over the years is because people think the way that they have sex is wrong, at the end of the day. There's nothing dirty or wrong about any combination of adults doing . Most of us have it, and a mild joke alluding to it shouldn't cause anyone to go in to shock. A joke which is unlikely to reach any children, and if it did it would go over their head.

I'm stunned at the hyperbole on this thread.

I’ve always wondered why Trans was part of the LGB community. Surely LGB is about sexual orientation, being trans has nothing to do with who you’re attracted to. I don’t understand why it’s included in this. Sexual orientation and gender are different things, surely?