Pride Month is approaching, a time when we particularly talk about allying with the LGBTQ+ community. A number of well-known brands join the campaign every year. Adidas came forward first and recently released its 'Let Love Be Your Legacy' collection. The brand presented a swimming costume from the women's collection on a male model's body.

Now The North Face has decided to join Pride Month. The outdoor apparel brand has invited a drag queen to join its campaign and has been severely criticized. Is a boycott of LGBTQ+-supportive brands now the norm?

The North Face has launched its 'Summer of Pride' campaign for the second time as part of Pride Month. In the ad, we can see well-known drag queen Pattie Gonia using the pronouns they/him. The moustachioed activist dressed in a rainbow outfit encourages people to "come out... in nature".

"Hi, it's me Patti Gonia - a real-life homosexual - today I'm here with The North Face and we are here to invite you to come out... in nature with us. Nature lets you be who you are (even gay). Ladies and gentlethems you are cordially invited to 'The Summer of Pride' with my friends at The North Face", says Patti Gonia in the commercial.

In addition to the campaign with a drag queen, The North Face has also released the Pride 2023 collection, which features lots of rainbow clothing - colourful T-shirts, trousers, shoes and even blankets or bum bags. There are also rainbow goods for children included in the collection.

Unfortunately, as expected, The North Face was fiercely criticized after involving a person from the LGBTQ+ community in its campaign. The same thing happened with Nike and Adidas. Internet users and conservative politicians are encouraging a boycott of the brand.

"Well, I guess North Face wanted to get a taste of what conservatives did to Bud Light and Target. How many times do we have to explain to the woke marketing departments at these disgusting companies that A.merica is not a nation of degenerates? Let’s make it as shameful to wear North Face as it is to drink Bud Light!"- conservative politician Lauren Boebert tweeted.

Another Twitter user wrote: "Please boycott Marxist North Face. This is unacceptable."

The North Face, however, has no intention of backing down because of the haters' attacks. In a statement to Newsweek the brand points out that it wants to create an accepting space online where there is no room for hate. It believes that outdoor activity is for everyone, regardless of their identity.

The North Face posted a message on Instagram in response to criticism.

"We recognize the opportunity our brand has to shape the future of the outdoors and we want that future to be a more accepting and loving place," the message said.

"We're partnering with Pattie because we believe the outdoors are for everyone.

"The North Face online community is designed to be a safe, positive and inclusive environment. It's why we have a zero-tolerance policy against racist, discriminatory, threatening, abusive, harmful, vulgar or attacking social media comments, which will be removed immediately."

On one hand, more and more brands are involving LGBTQ+ people in their campaigns (recent adverts being a good example of that). On the other hand, however, these campaigns provoke violent opposition every time. One well-known brand for instance, decided to hide its Pride Month promoting products because of severe attacks.

The only good thing about this recurring pattern is that more brands, despite such conciderable opposition, are not afraid to work with LGBTQ+ people. Let's hope this trend continues and people who declare they won't buy anything from companies that support the rainbow community simply have nowhere else to shop.

Source: Newsweek, PinkNews, The North Face