Beyond Rainbows: Making Pride Month Meaningful

Pride is both a celebration and a protest that takes place each year from June 1st to June 30th, it is rooted in the 1969 Stonewall riots that sparked the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement. Pride honours the progress made, while recognising the work still required to secure equality for all. A prominent theme for this year’s Pride Month is “The Fabric of Freedom,” celebrating the unity and strength of the LGBTQ+ community through its diverse cultures and shared experiences.

According to a recent survey by Deloitte, more than 70% of LGBT+ employees are more inclined to stay with their current employer because of its approach to LGBT+ inclusion. Another study by Stonewall reveals that more than 40% of LGBTQ+ staff have hidden their identity at work for fear of discrimination. Meanwhile, research from McKinsey shows companies with inclusive cultures are 35% more likely to outperform their peers.

These statistics reveal a simple truth: inclusive habits build trust, loyalty, and innovation. Yet each June, many companies prioritise appearance over impact. This blog cuts through corporate rainbow-washing to offer a guide for making Pride Month meaningful and avoiding performative allyship.

What is Performative Allyship?

Performative allyship is more than an empty gesture — it actively undermines trust and marginalises the very people it claims to support. During Pride Month, the most visible signs of this include:

• Rainbow Logos & No Internal Policy Change: A 2023 YouGov poll found that only 17% of LGBTQ+ employees believe their companies are genuinely inclusive, despite visible Pride branding.
• One-off Pride Events & No Follow-Through: Data from HR Review highlights how 62% of companies run Pride-themed events with no subsequent changes in workplace policy.
•  Tick-box Diversity Hires & No Structural Change: Hiring for diversity without addressing culture leads to retention issues, particularly among LGBTQ+ employees (Source: McKinsey).
• Ignoring Feedback From Queer Staff: A CIPD report shows only 29% of LGBTQ+ staff feel confident that their concerns will be addressed by leadership.
• Campaigns that Centre Non-LGBTQ+ Voices: Multiple studies have shown that campaigns led by allies, rather than LGBTQ+ people themselves, often result in tone-deaf messaging.

How Can We Move from Performative Allyship to Genuine Support?

Prioritise Impact Over Optics

Peter Tatchell is a world-renowned human rights campaigner who has spent more than five decades championing LGBTQ+ rights, global justice, and free speech. Best known for his work with the Gay Liberation Front and founding the Peter Tatchell Foundation, he has led countless campaigns that challenge both institutional and societal discrimination. His fearless advocacy – including attempting a citizen’s arrest of Robert Mugabe and his leadership in London Pride events – has earned him international acclaim. Peter’s tireless efforts make him a powerful speaker on issues of authenticity and action in corporate allyship, and a figurehead for moving from token gestures to tangible, lasting change.

Authentic support goes beyond tweets or annual photo ops – it requires consistent action and meaningful engagement with the LGBTQ+ community. Here are the key steps to make that support real:

• Create & Fund Employee Resource Groups (ERGs): A LinkedIn report found that 70% of LGBTQ+ professionals who participate in ERGs feel more connected and supported at work.
• Audit Internal Policies Through an LGBTQ+ Lens: Research shows that top inclusive employers have regular audits of HR policies to ensure fairness and protection (Source: Stonewall).
• Prioritise LGBTQ+ Mental Health & Wellbeing: The Mental Health Foundation reports that LGBTQ+ people are twice as likely to experience mental health issues due to stigma, discrimination, and exclusion.
• Genuinely Listen To & Act On Employee Feedback: Listening sessions, anonymous reporting tools, and inclusive leadership training can drastically improve workplace culture.

Make Inclusion Ongoing

Matt Ellison is a prominent transgender speaker and inclusion consultant, known for helping organisations navigate the complexities of inclusive practice. After transitioning at 39, Matt has used his lived experience to inform training programmes and keynote talks across the public and private sectors. He is particularly sought-after for his practical, no-nonsense approach to embedding real change. His keynote speeches draw on personal resilience, workplace equality, and systemic transformation, making him an indispensable voice in the push against tokenism. Matt’s work is a living blueprint for the kind of authentic support Pride Month should inspire.

True inclusion is never a one-off. It’s a long-term investment that requires ongoing effort, review, and accountability. Consider these strategies:

• Inclusive Recruitment & Leadership Pipelines: A Glassdoor survey revealed that 76% of job seekers prioritise diversity when evaluating job offers.
• Ongoing Education & Unconscious Bias Training: Regular, evidence-based training significantly improves team cohesion and cultural competence (Source: Harvard Business Review).
• Strategic, Long-Term Partnerships with LGBTQ+ Groups: Partnerships with organisations such as Stonewall or UK Black Pride lead to sustainable change and mutual growth.
• Measurable, Transparent Action Plans & Annual Reviews: Accountability is key. Publicly reported metrics, like those recommended in the Workplace Equality Index, hold leaders to their promises.

Make Culture Your Strategy

Baroness Ruth Hunt, former CEO of Stonewall, stresses that lasting change is about embedding inclusive practice into every part of your culture from your boardroom to your breakroom. Baroness Ruth Hunt is a leading equality campaigner and former Chief Executive of Stonewall, where she expanded the charity’s work to include trans inclusion and faith-based dialogue. Under her leadership, Stonewall became one of the UK’s most influential LGBTQ+ organisations. Ruth has advised governments, corporates, and educational institutions on how to build cultures of belonging. Her consultations with over 700 trans people during her tenure highlight her commitment to deep, sustained listening. As a motivational speaker, Ruth combines strategic insight with personal warmth, making her a trusted voice in boardrooms and beyond. Her focus on practical, whole-of-organisation change is central to the mission of this blog.

True inclusion embraces intersectionality, listens to the margins, and transfers power. These voices remind us of what meaningful representation actually requires.

Make Space for Intersectionality

Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, affectionately known as Lady Phyll, co-founder of UK Black Pride, argues that if your pride campaign doesn’t acknowledge the intersections of race, gender, and sexuality, then it’s not truly inclusive. Her groundbreaking work has created safe, celebratory spaces for LGBTQ+ people of colour across Britain. A tireless advocate for intersectional justice, Phyll was also a trustee for Stonewall and a public servant in trade unions. As a motivational speaker, she excels at weaving lived experience with radical thought leadership, empowering audiences to consider equity through a broader, more inclusive lens. Her message is vital to the goal of this blog: centring those too often excluded from the mainstream Pride narrative.

Move Beyond the Rainbow

Munroe Bergdorf is a trailblazing British model, writer, and social activist who has become a powerful voice for trans rights and racial justice. She was the first transgender model to front a L’Oréal campaign and has used her platform to hold institutions accountable, from fashion houses to government policy. Named an LGBTQ+ Changemaker by Attitude Magazine, Munroe combines personal vulnerability with sharp social critique. Her speeches challenge audiences to think critically about privilege, power, and representation, making her an impactful speaker for organisations striving to do more than pay lip service during Pride. Her insights bring this blog’s mission full circle: to move beyond rainbows and create real change.

Final Thoughts

Pride is not a moment. It’s a mandate for structural, ongoing commitment to equity. Hiring a speaker from our ‘Beyond Rainbows’ roster brings authentic experience, real-world strategies, and the motivational power to turn ideas into action. From Peter Tatchell’s uncompromising advocacy to Munroe Bergdorf’s fierce intersectional leadership, our speakers will challenge, inspire, and transform your approach to inclusion.

Explore more keynote speakers and take the first step towards meaningful impact. Contact us today – call The Diversity and Inclusion Speakers Agency on 0203 9816 297 or fill out our online contact form to find out more on how you can book an LGBT and Pride Month speaker.