TDS Time Machine | Pride Month

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Speaker 7 You're listening to Comedy Central.

Speaker 2 Happy Pride Month, everyone. Or as it's called at Mike Pence's house, June.
Pride is a celebration of queerness, acceptance, and club remixes you can actually dance to.

Speaker 2 And today, I'm here at RuPaul's private pool to tell you how Pride Month came to be. Because just like all queer people, June has a coming out story of its own.

Speaker 2 You could say Pride's roots go back to the 60s with Philly's Reminder Day pickets. Reminder Day was like the precursor to what Pride is now in the same way that Madonna was the precursor to Lady Gaga.

Speaker 2 And if you don't get that reference, you should probably stop watching now because this is a Pride segment and you're a terrible ally.

Speaker 2 The 60s also saw protests all over America, like the Black Cat Tavern Riot in LA and a protest at the White House demanding equal employment opportunities for gay people.

Speaker 2 That's right, it used to be legal legal to fire people just for being gay, which makes no sense.

Speaker 2 Who you have sex with should have no bearing on whether you get to keep your job, unless you do it on the copy machine. Well-known fact, that is how most paper jams get started.

Speaker 2 I learned the hard way.

Speaker 2 But then of course came Stonewall in 69, when police raided a gay bar in New York City called the Stonewall Inn, and the queer community fought back.

Speaker 2 It was such a significant moment in America's gay rights movement that to this day, that whole block is now a historic site visited by people from all over the world.

Speaker 2 The only way that corner of Christopher Street would attract more gay people is if Brittany had a residency there. Stonewall was the big turning point.

Speaker 2 Though they still faced so much discrimination, the LGBTQ community finally felt empowered enough to hold big public celebrations. The first ever official gay pride parade was held in Chicago in 1970.

Speaker 2 But one day later, New York held an entire Pride Week.

Speaker 2 During this seven day celebration, the community marched from the village to Central Park with slogans like gay, gay all the way and gay power, which isn't just a good slogan.

Speaker 2 It's also the energy source that keeps the lights running on Broadway.

Speaker 2 Of course, we can't talk about pride without talking about the symbol of it. No, not your grandparents Googling what is scissoring.

Speaker 2 I'm talking about the rainbow flag, which was designed in 1978 by Gilbert Baker. He called himself the gay Betsy Ross, which makes sense.

Speaker 2 Not only did they both design iconic flags, but they also belonged to communities where wigs were very popular.

Speaker 2 One of the coolest things about Gilbert Baker was that he refused to trademark the Pride flag.

Speaker 2 He wanted everyone to be able to share it and reinterpret it, which is why today the flag has become as fluid as sexuality itself.

Speaker 2 By the time we reached the 80s, the AIDS crisis came to the forefront and Pride took on a new mission.

Speaker 2 It wasn't just about visibility and acceptance, it was about destigmatizing and promoting public health, which was especially important because the federal government pretty much just pretended AIDS didn't exist, like what Tom Hanks does with Chet.

Speaker 2 Once we made it to the 90s, Pride was even more mainstream than ever before.

Speaker 2 And in 1999, President Bill Clinton signed the executive order officially recognizing June as Pride Month for the first time.

Speaker 2 Yeah, if two people of the same gender wanted to have sexual relations, that was fine with him. Even if he didn't totally understand the definition of sexual relations.

Speaker 9 I did not have.

Speaker 2 Clinton's executive order referred to June as gay and lesbian pride month. Then in 2009, President Obama changed it to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month.

Speaker 2 Then President Trump dialed it back a little and just called it LGBT Pride Month, which makes sense. No big words, and it's less scary for Mike Pence.

Speaker 2 But these days, the Biden administration extended the name again to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer Pride Month, making it, as of now, the only thing that's been built back better.

Speaker 2 But whatever you call it, Pride has truly become a global phenomenon. It's celebrated everywhere.
Manila, South Africa, Brazil, Madrid.

Speaker 2 Pride's gone to so many places, if it had an Instagram, you'd have to mute their stories. We get it, Pride.
You had fun in Spain. Stop making the rest of us feel so boring.

Speaker 2 So this month, don't forget where Pride came from and all the people who fought to make it a reality. The LGBTQ community still faces many challenges, but it's also experienced a lot of progress.

Speaker 2 And if you ask me,

Speaker 2 that's worth celebrating.

Speaker 10 Hello, hello, hello.

Speaker 2 RuPaul's back from vacation early.

Speaker 11 Vermont Supreme Court gives gay couples legal rights.

Speaker 15 New Hampshire makes a remark under its breath and scratches its ass.

Speaker 17 The Vermont Supreme Court, grateful for a case not involving SAP rights and tapping permits, made history yesterday when it ruled gay couples are entitled to the same benefits and protections as heterosexual couples.

Speaker 13 The ruling prompted jubilation among Upper New England's gay community, thousands of whom took to the streets chanting, we're here, we're queer, get used to it.

Speaker 18 Yeah?

Speaker 15 Presidential candidate Steve Forbes added his 2 billion cents, calling the ruling a, quote, flagrant example of judicial activism.

Speaker 17 I believe in traditional marriage, just like his dear old dad.

Speaker 16 Being both Vermont-based and a highly regarded cultural barometer, Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream celebrated the event by releasing new flavors including apple brown Betty Friedan,

Speaker 11 Maplethorpe, and of course, penis.

Speaker 11 Geeks,

Speaker 21 losers,

Speaker 13 dweebs, simps, propellerheads.

Speaker 16 These are but a few of the labels that our society uses to describe the science fiction world.

Speaker 14 But as Steve Carell discovered, our collective intolerance hasn't spawned anger in return, but rather a spirit of inclusion that reflects the deepest meaning of turning the other cheek.

Speaker 23 The worlds of science fiction and fantasy have long presented positive images of gay characters.

Speaker 5 But I was going into Toshi Station to pick up some power converters.

Speaker 25 However, this on-screen tolerance hasn't been reflected off-screen until now.

Speaker 28 Welcome to Gay Laxicon 2000.

Speaker 29 What is Gay Laxicon?

Speaker 31 Gay Laxicon 2000 is a science fiction convention for gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgenders, their friends and family.

Speaker 30 Is it hard to tell people you're a science fiction buff?

Speaker 31 Yes, sometimes people have a harder time with that than the fact that I'm bi.

Speaker 29 You're bi?

Speaker 31 Yes.

Speaker 32 Cool.

Speaker 30 Is it time for gay science fiction fans to come out of the closet?

Speaker 31 Yes, it is.

Speaker 34 What would that closet of the future look like?

Speaker 34 I don't know. Wouldn't it be cool if the doors themselves didn't roll on little rollers, but have

Speaker 34 little air compressors underneath that.

Speaker 30 That's the kind of closet you want to come out of.

Speaker 35 Am I right?

Speaker 23 No matter what form that closet of the future may take, here at Gay Lexicon 2000, people are already out donning new experimental personas, attending informative science fiction forums,

Speaker 23 and admiring hundreds of fantasy-based works of art.

Speaker 37 Are you telling me that if I look at one of these, I'm going to be seeing imaginary animals having sex?

Speaker 21 Yes, indeed.

Speaker 37 Anthropomorphic erotica. Explain that concept to me.

Speaker 5 Well, that depends on the artist. Some of these people are notorious for drawing sexy skunks, some for rabbits, some for almost any species you can imagine.

Speaker 37 Could you describe what we're looking at here?

Speaker 29 What I'm looking at is based upon a lifetime of study, observation. I'm trying to make a comment about our society and the way we live today.

Speaker 34 It's a guy having anal sex with a fox.

Speaker 23 Clearly, there was something for everyone at Gay Lexicon. But as I soon found out, there was more.

Speaker 27 Much more.

Speaker 30 If I were were gay and a science fiction buff, which I am not either of them,

Speaker 34 what would you have for me to do here?

Speaker 31 The most exciting event would be the masquerade.

Speaker 30 What's so much fun about the masquerade?

Speaker 31 You find out a little bit about the personality.

Speaker 30 It brings out a different side to them.

Speaker 21 Yes,

Speaker 22 it shows a side that is usually hidden.

Speaker 36 Couldn't that be dangerous?

Speaker 23 While Jack Frost denied that there was any danger in the masquerade process, I had my doubts. So I decided to conduct a little experiment of my own.

Speaker 30 How does one create a costume for themselves?

Speaker 40 I guess, first of all, you have to know what you want to be.

Speaker 23 As I began to immerse myself in character after character, I realized that, in fact, there was no danger.

Speaker 36 By revealing my inner self, I found myself childlike, liberated, inspired, and

Speaker 23 very gay.

Speaker 11 Despite the Pope's presence, all is not well in Canada.

Speaker 14 In fact, many citizens are hoping the Pope can heal some very deep divisions that are threatening to tear the Canadian nation apart. Our own Ed Helms reports.

Speaker 33 Bill Watcott is a decent, hardworking Canadian citizen who is being persecuted because of his sexuality.

Speaker 9 I'm Bill Wattcott, and I'm definitely a heterosexual.

Speaker 33 By choosing to live an openly straight lifestyle, Bill has become an object of ridicule.

Speaker 9 Is it fair to say that because of your sexuality, you've suffered? Yes, that would be a fair statement.

Speaker 33 Suffered because he lives in Canada, our gay neighbor to the north. Where if you don't like gay music,

Speaker 33 gay sports,

Speaker 33 and gay cops, you're an outsider. And to make matters even worse for Bill Whatcott, he lives in Canada's gayest city, Regina.

Speaker 33 That's right, Regina, a hotbed of heterophobia, where local gay supremacist Duncan Campbell has this to say about Bill Whatcott.

Speaker 43 I don't think a lot of people like him.

Speaker 44 Ouch!

Speaker 33 Even in the face of straight-bashing like that, Bill has nothing but kind words for the gay majority.

Speaker 9 Homosexual sex is a sin. It doesn't matter what gender, that's disordered sex.
And it's a disordered desire and attraction. It's filthy.

Speaker 20 What have you found out?

Speaker 9 Think about the damage they're going to do to each other. And when they're going down that path, they're going down a path that'll lead to a lot of disease and unhappiness.

Speaker 33 He's tolerant, he's well-spoken, and he has a mustache. But the gays still refuse to accept Bill Watcott.

Speaker 33 So, in a heroic act of defiance, Bill decided to stand up for his kind and organized a parade in the name of Straight Bride, a colossal demonstration that brought downtown Regina to its knees.

Speaker 33 It was Straight Canada's finest hour, but the gay majority continues to make Bill's life a living hell.

Speaker 9 One time in Toronto, I had a homosexual try to pick me up.

Speaker 9 I actually I didn't even know he was gay. I was just trying to help him.

Speaker 9 You know, we were at a YMCA and he wasn't using correct technique. I'm sorry you were aware? Okay, the YMCA, do you have that in America? It's like a health club?

Speaker 9 It's a gay club. This one turned out to be a gay pickup spot because he asked me to go out for coffee and And I did.

Speaker 33 Nothing else happened, we swear. But despite these brushes with gayness, Bill has remained impressively grounded in his masculinity.
He showed me his gun collection.

Speaker 9 Geez, I am actually giving it a decent polish now.

Speaker 43 Yeah, polish that thing up.

Speaker 33 And even indulged me in a front yard tussle.

Speaker 33 Later, we enjoyed a relaxing moment together, where Bill shared even more details about his life as a heterosexual, including the fact that he's a male nurse.

Speaker 20 Not many

Speaker 9 nurses are hunters and gun owners.

Speaker 9 When will gay Canada accept people like Bill Whatcott?

Speaker 43 Probably never.

Speaker 33 And yet, Bill Watcott carries on, fighting for the rights of all straight, parade-loving Canadian male nurses, who sometimes get coffee with people they meet at the YMCA.

Speaker 33 Excellent.

Speaker 37 Really nice, really nice job.

Speaker 15 I have to say, an in-depth report is excellent reporting, Ed. Well done.

Speaker 20 Thank you. Thank you very much.
You're welcome.

Speaker 49 It's really interesting. In doing this report,

Speaker 20 I realized something about myself.

Speaker 21 Yeah,

Speaker 20 I'm straight.

Speaker 7 I said it. I'm straight.

Speaker 51 It feels pretty good.

Speaker 35 Ed, that's really not that big a deal.

Speaker 14 I mean, like 90% of the country says, I'm straight, and I don't go announcing it, but it's not that.

Speaker 21 You're straight, too? Yeah.

Speaker 21 Yeah.

Speaker 52 Ladies and gentlemen, TV's Jon Stewart, also straight.

Speaker 5 I had no idea you were.

Speaker 44 Yeah, it's not. We should hang out.

Speaker 21 Yes, yes.

Speaker 49 No, we could go to the YMCA, we could uh help each other work out uh give each other massages do you slow dance because

Speaker 15 head that's that's gay that's that's

Speaker 20 right i'm straight

Speaker 16 at helms everybody we'll be right back

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Speaker 39 You know, I had a crazy weekend.

Speaker 15 Yesterday, like every year, in the end of June, last weekend, I dress up in glitter like a peacock. peacock.
And I marched down Fifth Avenue to raise awareness of exotic birds.

Speaker 37 And

Speaker 51 I got to tell you, this year, almost more than any other year, it went really, really well.

Speaker 41 I couldn't believe the support I was getting.

Speaker 51 People are like, this is a great day. It's been too long, you know?

Speaker 11 And I was like, yeah, exotic birds, you know what I mean?

Speaker 38 And then people are like, wasn't Friday amazing?

Speaker 51 And I was like, why? What happened Friday?

Speaker 22 It is a history-making night night with a vote that just happened a short time ago. New York becomes the seventh jurisdiction in America to recognize marriage for same-sex couples.

Speaker 52 Wow, that's a major civil rights victory.

Speaker 12 New York

Speaker 37 is still applauding.

Speaker 13 Finally, New York State's gay and lesbian community are free from the burden that was having to set foot in Connecticut in order to get married.

Speaker 41 Really?

Speaker 11 The nuptials are in Stamford?

Speaker 12 Yes, it was last Friday night at 10.30 p.m.

Speaker 54 Eastern Gay Rights Time, after a week of tense negotiations and dueling protests featuring brutal gay versus Jew bullfighting.

Speaker 12 The Senate in Albany finally made an honest state of New York by a vote of 33 for destroying society as we know it and 29 against.

Speaker 13 The vote was in doubt right up until the the last minute. As of Thursday,

Speaker 13 the state senate was deadlocked 3131.

Speaker 15 Marriage rights supporters had to find at least one more Republican to flip and then up stepped Mark Desanti, state senator from Buffalo, who had run on a platform of banning gay marriage.

Speaker 4 Here's what he had to say.

Speaker 55 As a Catholic, I was raised to believe that marriage is between a man and a woman.

Speaker 8 All right, so we'll just move on from here. And

Speaker 15 maybe they'll find a vote from someone who doesn't appear to be on Elliot Ness's enemies list.

Speaker 55 I cannot legally come up with an argument against same-sex marriage.

Speaker 55 Who am I to say that someone does not have the same rights that I have with my wife, who I love, or they have the 1,300-plus rights that I share with her? I vote in the affirmative, Mr. President.

Speaker 55 You know what?

Speaker 46 I'm so impressed.

Speaker 11 In honor of this man, in honor of this great man, I will no longer do my offensive Italian New Yorker voice.

Speaker 12 For as long, because it's not often you see this son of a bitch, the courage that this mother, the balls, the giant f ⁇ ing gagoons hanging over this man like bocce balls on a summer afternoon.

Speaker 11 I can't, I'm sorry, it's very hard not to do the voice.

Speaker 11 It's a very fun voice.

Speaker 11 And so, with support of Grassanti and his fellow Republican Stephen Salon, gay marriage passed, and of course, you know what that means.

Speaker 56 The city estimates the new law will bring more than $180 million to the state in the next three years.

Speaker 44 Yes, excellent.

Speaker 41 Ladies and gentlemen, I also am cashing in.

Speaker 15 It's a perfect time to roll out my new Jon Stewart brand, Tuxpedoes.

Speaker 15 All the elegance and financial.

Speaker 12 But with the ball-flattering physique.

Speaker 15 Yes, indeed.

Speaker 12 While Friday's decision brings the total number of states permitting gay marriage in districts to seven, 41 other states still have laws on the books explicitly banning same-sex marriage.

Speaker 41 It's why many gay activists are looking for federal action to achieve national marriage equality.

Speaker 15 Last Thursday, Barack Obama addressed that very question.

Speaker 42 I have long believed that the so-called Defense of Marriage Act ought to be repealed.

Speaker 51 Huzzah!

Speaker 52 Hear, here!

Speaker 44 Yay!

Speaker 12 I assume the President's problem with the Defense of Marriage Act is that there should be a federal law in support of gay marriage.

Speaker 42 Part of the reason that DOMA doesn't make sense

Speaker 42 is that traditionally marriage has been decided by the states.

Speaker 42 Really?

Speaker 15 The gentleman with mixed-race parents parents playing the state's no-best card.

Speaker 37 You know, when I was born,

Speaker 32 I was born.

Speaker 17 When I was born, my parents' marriage would have been illegal in Florida and Virginia.

Speaker 54 So, different strokes.

Speaker 15 Of course, the implications of legalizing gay marriage can be hard to fully understand unless perhaps you have a correspondent who works in musical theater.

Speaker 15 We sent our own Josh Gadd from Book of Mormon out to make sense of this landmark legislation.

Speaker 40 The legalization of gay marriage means one thing. Best put by Super Bowl hero David Tyree.

Speaker 57 This will be the beginning of our country sliding toward,

Speaker 57 you know, it's a strong word, but anarchy.

Speaker 40 Now everyone from Albany to Rochester will have to deal with what people here in this city have long had to accept as part of their daily lives.

Speaker 40 leather daddies creating traffic snarls and sailors gone AWOL.

Speaker 40 Just like an average day in the gay community, isn't it?

Speaker 37 No, this is a very special day that we've got.

Speaker 40 Oh yeah, tonight's BET Awards.

Speaker 11 I forgot.

Speaker 37 That's not why we're marching.

Speaker 40 Sir, sir, may I ask you a quick question? How is this not like the apocalypse?

Speaker 3 This is a fing parade, dude.

Speaker 40 Yeah, it reminds me a bit of that passage from Revelations. And behold, I saw a pale horse and its rider was wearing a chalk strap and hell followed.

Speaker 47 I don't read the Bible.

Speaker 3 It's in there, page 42.

Speaker 56 What kind of parade is in store for tomorrow?

Speaker 43 I don't think any other parades. Just we have Pride only once a year.

Speaker 40 You're saying this is all for the parade.

Speaker 3 Yes.

Speaker 40 But in reality, the St. Patrick's Day Parade is a very accurate portrayal of how Irish people behave every day.

Speaker 38 I wouldn't say that at all. Oh, I would.
St.

Speaker 32 Patrick's Day Parade.

Speaker 3 I would.

Speaker 58 Because some of the people who are out making a mess on St.

Speaker 35 Patrick's Day aren't even Irish.

Speaker 40 Yeah, but Irish people are always getting drunk and vomiting inside subway stations. Take a good look, upstate.
Normal, respectable people like this will have nowhere to turn.

Speaker 40 Are you worried about the repercussions of gay marriage?

Speaker 58 Yeah, I'm one of those people.

Speaker 32 Are you gay?

Speaker 58 I'm gay.

Speaker 40 I fish with guys like you.

Speaker 58 Well, thanks. Yep.

Speaker 24 We look like other people.

Speaker 3 You're not gay.

Speaker 40 That's gay. You're not gay.

Speaker 58 They're gay gay and ungay. Really?

Speaker 58 David Tyree! David Tyree!

Speaker 40 That was David Tyree, Super Bowl hero, bravely showing his face here at Gay Pride Parade.

Speaker 38 Unbelievable.

Speaker 60 It's become clear to me now that you're not actually David Tyree.

Speaker 40 Even though I was on Broadway, once they found out I was a breeder, the knives came out.

Speaker 61 I loved you in the Book of Mormon. Oh, thank you.
Too bad you didn't win.

Speaker 62 Are you from the Book of Mormon?

Speaker 32 Yeah, you look like it.

Speaker 38 Oh my god, you didn't beat the town team.

Speaker 32 Oh, we should have gotten it.

Speaker 4 Oh, I hope you guys have fun yourselves.

Speaker 40 As the day wore on, it became clear that no one, not even this intrepid reporter, was immune from their takeover.

Speaker 43 I think that New York is a part of the world right now, and then New York's gonna still be in New York, you know, and just be a part of everything else.

Speaker 32 That's really, yes.

Speaker 40 Then how did this happen?

Speaker 3 What? Three minutes ago, I was wearing a suit.

Speaker 59 I have no idea how I even got in these.

Speaker 40 Good luck, Buffalo.

Speaker 53 You'll need.

Speaker 51 Anarchy!

Speaker 5 It's Pride Month, right?

Speaker 5 Which America has been celebrating with huge Pride parades around the country, from right here in New York all the way to Buford, Wyoming.

Speaker 5 Now, there, it was just two guys walking to CVS, but they were having a good time, so it counts as a parade.

Speaker 5 But, but, yesterday's Supreme Court news has dimmed the celebration because Justice Kennedy was the swing vote supporting gay rights. And there's widespread concern that Trump's next pick won't be.

Speaker 5 It's a harsh way to end Pride Month. You know, it's kind of like ending your birthday party with a cancer doctor popping out of a cake, like, surprise!

Speaker 5 Happy last birthday to you!

Speaker 46 And although

Speaker 61 you guys sound like you were at the birthday for real.

Speaker 5 And although many are worried about the future of LGBTQ rights, let's take a moment to celebrate how much progress has been made. And not just in America, but around the world.

Speaker 2 Taiwan will become the first Asian nation to legalize same-sex marriage.

Speaker 64 History tonight down under Australia's parliament has voted to legalize gay marriage.

Speaker 27 Germany's parliament voted to legalize same-sex marriage in a historic vote.

Speaker 59 Bermuda has now legalized same-sex marriage for a second time. The island's Supreme Court overturned a gay marriage ban that was signed in the law just four months ago.

Speaker 59 The Supreme Court first legalized same-sex marriage last May.

Speaker 53 Then in February, Bermuda became the first national territory in the world to repeal its gay marriage legislation.

Speaker 5 Yeah, that's right. Bermuda legalized same-sex marriage twice.
Yeah. And I know that seems weird, but that's just how legislation works in Bermuda.

Speaker 5 You see, what happens is you pass it in parliament, and then it goes to the triangle where it's lost.

Speaker 5 then a deep sea diver finds it and takes it back to parliament

Speaker 5 and it's not just marriage equality around the world LGBTQ rights are moving forward in different ways Pakistan passed transgender rights Botswana's high court recognized the trans woman's identity for the first time and all of Georgia is now gay.

Speaker 44 Yeah.

Speaker 5 Yeah, you don't even, those queer eye guys do not mess around.

Speaker 5 And even though and even though the Trump administration has eroded LGBTQ rights by rolling back anti-discrimination laws and banning trans people from the military, they're going to find it a lot harder to reverse the public's views on gay rights.

Speaker 7 The most recent ABC News poll found that 81% of Americans said companies should not be allowed to refuse service to gays and lesbians.

Speaker 8 67% now say the same-sex marriages should be legal. That's the highest we've ever seen.
This is one of the most remarkable changes that we have seen in our history.

Speaker 2 As the country heads toward midterm elections this fall, some history is being made.

Speaker 2 An unprecedented number of candidates who are openly lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender are running for office.

Speaker 5 That's an incredible story.

Speaker 44 It's incredible all around, right?

Speaker 5 Think of how perceptions have shifted. And it wasn't easy.
Don't ever forget, it wasn't easy.

Speaker 5 It took marches, it took protests, it took lawsuits, and two different will and graces to get America here. But it got here all the same.
So happy Pride Month, everyone. We'll be right back.

Speaker 5 As you know, June is Pride Month, a time when the LGBTQ community celebrates the right to be seen and recognized. But our corporation's part of that community.

Speaker 5 Well, we sent Jabuki Young White to Pittsburgh to find out.

Speaker 27 Hi, I'm I'm Jabuki Young White, the Daily Show's senior Rust Bell correspondent.

Speaker 48 JK, I'm gay, and so is Pittsburgh.

Speaker 66 It's Pride Month, and Equality March is the original Pittsburgh Pride.

Speaker 54 It has bikers, pups, pups, furries, queens, twunks, drunks, cops, bears, and fish creatures.

Speaker 28 But there is one group that not everyone is happy about.

Speaker 47 A lot of corporations are capitalizing off Pride and off LGBTQIA plus like merch. I don't know, they're just making a lot of money off this.

Speaker 43 That's what the Q and LGBTQQIA stands for, corporations.

Speaker 38 Okay.

Speaker 28 But surely discriminating against our pride-loving corporations can't be the answer.

Speaker 2 Pittsburgh Pride Equality March is for everybody. It doesn't matter who you are, where you work, or who you love.

Speaker 43 And just so you know, we love corporations Viacom. You're great.
Keep doing what you do. We're really big fans here at the Daily Show Viacom.

Speaker 18 Love you.

Speaker 28 So the answer is obviously to hug these corporations close. And corporations are hugging right back.

Speaker 43 Google, KPMG, Aetna, Lyft, Not Chick-fil-A.

Speaker 35 And here comes the true Slay queen, Walmart.

Speaker 35 Is Walmart gay?

Speaker 58 Walmart does take pride in their gay associates as a company. I don't think you can label a company with their sexual orientation.

Speaker 35 Walmart seems like a top to me.

Speaker 58 I would agree with that.

Speaker 43 Yeah, I think it's amazing that so many people could come out and just live their truth as a marketable demographic. For sure.

Speaker 43 And they really made it like a safe place for everybody, I think, for us too. Yeah, yeah, 100%.
It's like, here I am. I'm queer.

Speaker 38 I have a debit card. I'm just gay as hell now.

Speaker 28 And gays love money, bitch.

Speaker 62 Yeah.

Speaker 62 Right.

Speaker 48 So queer capitalism is totally chill.

Speaker 28 Actually, there is a specific issue with corporate sponsorship in Pittsburgh, and it involves the F-word.

Speaker 28 No, not that.

Speaker 3 Fracking.

Speaker 67 There's a lot of corporations that are seemingly buying. Last year, this march was called the EQT Equality March.
EQT doesn't stand for equality, it stands for they're a fracking company.

Speaker 43 Do you think that it's appropriate that a fracking company is a sponsor for Pittsburgh Pride?

Speaker 67 Lol.

Speaker 67 I think that it is completely inappropriate that a fracking company is a sponsor for anything.

Speaker 28 EQT doesn't just shoot hot liquid deep into holes in the ground, they also swing both ways by supporting Pride and various anti-gay politicians.

Speaker 48 So what are people supposed to do?

Speaker 58 Have a separate pride without corporate sponsors?

Speaker 3 Some say frack yes.

Speaker 65 This pride event represents the people.

Speaker 65 Non-corporational pride, something that centers our TLGBTQ communities of Pittsburgh.

Speaker 43 Do you think corporations can be gay people?

Speaker 65 No, corporations cannot be gay people.

Speaker 35 The people's pride is non-corporate, has more color in its rainbow, and I found someone who can keep up with my moves. But are they turning their back on progress?

Speaker 66 Don't you think it's beautiful that queer people have been able to come out and live their truth as a marketable capitalizing demographic no

Speaker 63 i would think it would be beautiful if those actions were genuine they want to be a part of what's trending right now and right now being gay is trendy you know pose is out and there are lots of gay celebrities now could you name a couple by the chance so off top of my head right now big frida okay others dayshawn wesley and leomi maldonado

Speaker 28 they don't even want my brand this is where i draw the line There has to be some way for corporations like EQT to prove that they're really committed and not just experimenting.

Speaker 43 Like maybe they just need to show that they're really about queer subculture in like a more inventive, creative way.

Speaker 58 So I'm afraid where you're going with this.

Speaker 43 I thought that maybe this could really get across the message of what EQT stands for.

Speaker 56 It's like drilling, but also

Speaker 44 with the

Speaker 38 maybe that.

Speaker 43 that's right progress takes time 50 years ago corporations wouldn't touch the gay community and now they can't wait to show their love in public and what better way to reciprocate that love than with the EQT Berry Speed Deep Wrecking Drill Deck brought to you by EQT

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Speaker 5 Let's kick it off with the Supreme Court, America's highest court and the place Ruth Beda Ginsburg goes in between workouts.

Speaker 5 Yesterday, the court heard oral arguments in a big case that could have major impacts on the workplace.

Speaker 45 The Supreme Court is back at work this week, and today it heard arguments in one of the most important cases of its new term. Does existing law protect LGBTQ employees on the job?

Speaker 69 The justices heard the case of Gerald Bostock, fired from a county job in Georgia after joining a gay softball league. He sued, but lower courts threw his case out.

Speaker 69 They ruled that the 1964 Civil Rights Act, signed by President Johnson, which bans job discrimination on the basis of race and sex, among other factors, does not cover sexual orientation.

Speaker 69 Vostok's lawyer says firing someone for being gay is discrimination based on sex.

Speaker 5 Man, this is going to be a huge case, and we're going to have to wait to see what the court decides. But if you ask me, it's crazy that you can fire someone for being gay.

Speaker 62 You know?

Speaker 5 I mean, like, if you're fired at work, it should only be for work reasons, like stealing, or not showing up, or saying you like the final episode of Game of Thrones. You should be fired.

Speaker 5 It's like a big deal. Also, I've always wondered this, like, how do you fire someone for being gay? You can't tell who's gay.
Like, if people haven't come out, you don't know.

Speaker 5 You don't even know what gay is. Well, you're just gonna have bosses walking up to employees, like, Bob, you're fired for being gay.
He's like, I'm not gay, I'm just southern.

Speaker 5 Oh, oh, I'm sorry, I got confused. I'm sorry.

Speaker 5 You realize this ruling could also affect everyone, not just gay people, right?

Speaker 5 Because by this logic, if you extend the logic, anything you do in your sex life can be grounds for losing your job, right? It's your sexual preference. That's what they're saying.

Speaker 5 Yeah, if you're one of those people who's really quiet during sex, yeah, you could lose your job at the mall, huh?

Speaker 5 Yeah, if you're into domination and humiliating people, you could lose your job at Verizon customer service, huh?

Speaker 5 Yeah, and if you're the type of person who doesn't believe in the female orgasm, you could lose your job as vice president of the United States.

Speaker 38 It could be really bad.

Speaker 32 You don't know.

Speaker 5 I don't want that to happen to him.

Speaker 5 But actually, I'll be honest, I'm looking forward to this decision because the people who get mad about other people people having sex are always the ones who aren't getting any themselves.

Speaker 5 So we're going to know, by the way they vote, who on the Supreme Court f ⁇

Speaker 5 June

Speaker 5 is Pride Month.

Speaker 38 Or as it's called in the state of Florida, shh.

Speaker 5 But

Speaker 5 while you're out there celebrating Pride, don't forget that some of its biggest supporters weren't always on its side. For more, we turn to Dulce Sloan for another installment of Dulceyan.

Speaker 6 Hello, friends.

Speaker 60 It's June, which means this is the first month of the year where it's just hot enough outside to not be sexy. But in America, we know June also means Gay Pride Month.

Speaker 60 So I wanna wish everyone a happy pride. And I'm not the only one.
This year it feels like every damn company with a logo is going full rainbow.

Speaker 60 You've probably seen these ads like Burger King offering whoppers with two top buns and two bottom buns. Listen, it's still bread.

Speaker 60 And every gay man I know is not eating bread in the summer, they're doing keto and crunches until October.

Speaker 60 But don't forget, companies weren't always jumping on the pride float looking like a Lisa Frank trapper keeper.

Speaker 60 When the gay rights movement first began in 1969, Most companies were too afraid to advertise to gay people. They didn't want to offend the rest of America, especially religious conservatives.

Speaker 60 They were so uptight they thought pretzels are too sexy. All those twists.

Speaker 4 Oh, it's so sinful.

Speaker 60 So, companies kept their distance, except for

Speaker 60 Absolute Vodka. Absolute was one of the first big companies to market to the queer community because those sweets don't give a shit about the religious right.

Speaker 60 They were like, who cares if the right doesn't like us? All they drink is milk. So, thanks to Absolute for being a true ally.

Speaker 60 It's a good year.

Speaker 60 I didn't drink the whole thing because I got a work meeting after this and they said I got to be sober this time.

Speaker 60 Anyway, as gay people became more visible in society, some advertisers slowly started reaching out into the community until the AIDS epidemic blew up. That sent companies fleeing for the hills again.

Speaker 60 Oh no, what if the gays look at our ads? Like, is that how you get ads? But you know what company doubled down on their advertising during the AIDS crisis?

Speaker 52 That's right.

Speaker 6 Absolute vodka.

Speaker 60 The second half got a kick.

Speaker 44 Damn. All right.

Speaker 60 Where was I? Right. By the 1990s, the queer community had once again fought its way into greater acceptance.

Speaker 60 So brands once again tried to dip their toes into the pool party, but they were still too nervous to jump all the way in.

Speaker 60 So American advertising entered a phase now known as gay vague, which sounds a lot like being in a fraternity. Basically, it was companies hinting at possible homosexuality.

Speaker 60 Like this Volkswagen ad where two dudes are driving in a car and then pick up this dirty ass chair off the sidewalk. So the ad leaves it open to interpretation.
Are they roommates?

Speaker 4 Are they lovers?

Speaker 46 Are they roommate lovers?

Speaker 60 Because that's the worst kind of hookup. You gotta wait for them to text you back and finish up in the bathroom.

Speaker 60 Now, a few times during this era, a brand tried to make an outright gay ad like Benetton and IKEA. And the ad completely won over the religious right and they apologized for everything.

Speaker 60 Psych! One IKEA in Long Island even got a bomb threat. What is wrong with these religious fanatics? They know the furniture isn't gay, right?

Speaker 60 Plus, if there's one place that can reassemble after a bombing, it's an IKEA.

Speaker 60 Unfortunately for the religious right, but luckily for everyone else, their time was ending.

Speaker 60 Over the next two decades, Americans started to realize that gay people were just the same as everyone else, except with better abs.

Speaker 60 And as popular opinion improved, companies finally felt it was safe enough to take gay money. And this time, it was major brands.
Amazon started advertising to gay people.

Speaker 60 Coca-Cola aired a commercial with two dads during the Super Bowl. And Just Salad even had a big gay salad, which, come on, that was just a regular salad.
At least saw some glitter in it.

Speaker 60 And that brings us to today, when practically every company does Pride Month marketing.

Speaker 60 But just because every June a business acts like they're auditioning for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, it doesn't mean their values line up with their tweets.

Speaker 60 Take AT ⁇ T, for example.

Speaker 60 They love to show everyone how much they support Pride, while also giving $1 million to anti-LGBTQ politicians and PACs, or how retailers like HM are launching pride collections with items made in countries that criminalize homosexuality, which is another reason wearing this ugly ass top should be a crime.

Speaker 60 And they aren't the only hypocrites donating to anti-queer causes, but hey, why go through all the trouble of listing them here?

Speaker 5 I'm no hater.

Speaker 60 Oh, and that one too.

Speaker 44 Okay.

Speaker 2 Are we done?

Speaker 2 Listen,

Speaker 5 let's make it sad.

Speaker 60 The point is, enjoy all those gay whoppers and pink Toyotas, but don't forget what this month is about.

Speaker 60 Pride is the time to celebrate the right to love who you want and to honor the people who fought to give us that right.

Speaker 60 Back when no brand was on their side. Except for

Speaker 52 absolute

Speaker 60 you know what one of those gay whoppers sounds real good about now though I'm dizzy

Speaker 39 it's June which means it's time to celebrate the holiday Jojo see why invented Pride Month

Speaker 39 Pride Month started as an anti-establishment protest but over the last few decades it's gone mainstream there are parades in every city pizza hut puts out gay boxes and even Exxon changes all these oil spills to a rainbow color.

Speaker 39 Hashtag ally. But recently, the conservative backlash has been growing, and this year, some Pride traditions are coming under fire.

Speaker 71 In Florida, Ron DeSantis' administration has forbidden cities across the state from displaying colorful lights on their bridges during Pride Month, limiting bridge coloration to red, white, and blue.

Speaker 70 Bridges across the state that normally illuminate in colorful arrays of light to mark holidays won't be able to use any other colors.

Speaker 70 The goal of Ron's order is clearly to shut down any celebration of Pride Month.

Speaker 39 Yo, what is up with Ron DeSantis? I mean, I can't believe a guy who rocks three-inch heels is such a dick to the gay community.

Speaker 37 But by the way,

Speaker 39 by the way, red, white, and blue lights on crumbling infrastructure, perfect metaphor for America.

Speaker 39 And it's so sad because having pride colors on bridges also prevented a lot of straight people from killing themselves. Guys would be like, hey, I can't jump off this bridge.

Speaker 13 That's gay.

Speaker 39 But if you think it can't get any pettier than a ban on rainbow bridges, there's a bar in Idaho saying, hold my heterosexual beer.

Speaker 64 An Idaho bar is offering a break from the pride push that's being forced on Americans by declaring June to be heterosexual awesomeness month.

Speaker 64 The old state saloon offering deals all month long, including heteromale Monday, when any heterosexual male get this, who must be dressed like like a heterosexual male gets a free pint of beer

Speaker 39 you must be dressed like a heterosexual male so this straight bar is gonna be critiquing everyone's outfits as soon as they walk in the door

Speaker 39 it sounds super straight to me

Speaker 39 what

Speaker 39 what exactly are they even saying here Like, our bar is so straight that we're offering special deals to pack it entirely with dudes. I mean, you're basically one brick away from being stonewalled.

Speaker 39 Okay, so

Speaker 39 now I guess someone could argue that none of this stuff is explicitly anti-gay, but just check out how Colorado Republicans are celebrating pride.

Speaker 72 The Colorado Republican Party is calling on people to burn all gay pride flags, proclaiming in a mass email to supporters that, quote, God hates pride.

Speaker 72 The Republican Party's message attacks so-called godless groomers, and it echoes the anti-gay slur used by Westboro Baptist church protesters.

Speaker 48 Okay,

Speaker 48 awful story, but hang on.

Speaker 39 Wait, did Jesus have laser eyes?

Speaker 39 Was that in the Bible? I mean I knew he had powers. I didn't know he was in the X-Men.

Speaker 39 I don't get how anyone can be so angry about rainbow flags.

Speaker 39 I mean, it must be exhausting being that homophobic, you know, just eating a bag of Skittles like, no homo, no, no, no, no, no, homo, it's no homo.

Speaker 39 So So there's backlash to Pride Month all around the country and guess what? Some of those corporate allies are turning out to be fair weather friends.

Speaker 50 Target says it will no longer sell its Pride Month collection in all of its stores.

Speaker 50 The decision comes after conservative groups became upset over the chain's decision to sell LGBTQ themed merchandise last June. The company says the backlash harmed sales.

Speaker 39 Are you kidding me? Target stopped selling gay stuff, but their logo is literally a butthole.

Speaker 21 Well,

Speaker 32 you know, that's it.

Speaker 32 From now on,

Speaker 39 I will be going somewhere else to pretend to shop so I can poop in the bathroom. For more on this story, we go live to Target with our senior lesbian correspondent, Grace Coolinsman.

Speaker 39 Grace, Grace,

Speaker 39 Grace, what's the feeling at Target?

Speaker 2 It's pretty amazing. Did you know if you use the self-checkout machine, you don't have to pay?

Speaker 39 Yeah, okay, I don't think that's right, but that's not what I'm I'm talking about. How do people feel about Target banging gay merchandise?

Speaker 2 Oh, yeah, it's so disappointing. Gay people just want equality.

Speaker 2 If Target wants to ban gay items, fine, but if they want to be equal, then they also need to ban all the straight items like golf clubs or cargo shorts or two-in-one shampoos.

Speaker 39 Wait, no, no, that's that's that's a shampoo I use. I mean, it saves time and my hair looks great.

Speaker 5 Yes.

Speaker 60 All right, so, anyway, so

Speaker 39 straight items, items that straight people use?

Speaker 2 No, it's more of a vibe, but every product has a clear orientation.

Speaker 39 Every product, okay, what about like, I don't know, water bottles? Gay.

Speaker 39 Cell phone cases? Great.

Speaker 39 Okay, I think I get it. So a a slotted spoon, that feels gay.

Speaker 2 Slotted spoons are so straight. They're serving nothing.

Speaker 4 Okay.

Speaker 39 Okay, what about sweaters? Straight. Dog sweaters.
Gay. Electrical sockets.

Speaker 2 Gay, obviously, they're power bottoms. Okay,

Speaker 39 what about calculators?

Speaker 2 So that one's interesting. Standard calculators are straight, but graphing calculators are gay because they're doing way too much.

Speaker 32 Okay.

Speaker 39 Okay, I think I'm getting it. Printers are straight and humidifiers are gay.

Speaker 2 Ronnie, don't out them. They haven't told their family yet.

Speaker 39 Okay, wait, shh, shit,

Speaker 39 I'm sorry. I don't know what.

Speaker 2 Look, hey, that's besides the point, okay? Pride isn't about rainbow tank tops at Target.

Speaker 2 It's a way for the queer community to remember how far we've come from the violence and discrimination we once faced.

Speaker 2 And most importantly, it's about me hooking up with my ex-girlfriend's ex-girlfriend in a cabin in Vermont.

Speaker 2 Let's just say that I'm the electrical socket.

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