My heart fills with excitement as we can finally celebrate Pride Month outside the virtual world this year.
Nothing beats the feeling of gathering in the same place, exchanging stories, and holding your loved ones close as you sing and dance and celebrate diversity and love.
As someone who has experienced an accepting and safe workplace, I will share our top Pride Month ideas for work that you can also try.
Top 30 Pride Month Celebration Ideas For Work
1. Host Pride Month Social Gathering
Of course, one of the best Pride Month ideas for work is a social gathering among colleagues and friends.
Take this time to relax and express your authentic self with people you love and trust.
Share your experiences, aspirations, and stories to deepen your understanding of each other despite having diverse backgrounds.
Don't forget to wear your favorite Pride-themed outfits and accessories to channel the festive and vibrant atmosphere of Pride Month.
2. Pride Month Office Decoration
Celebrating Pride Month at work is more fun if you decorate your office or workspace with colorful LGBTQ+ flags, banners, and symbols.
The companies or organizations can also initiate decorating the common areas like break rooms with rainbow-colored designs.
If your office has a bulletin board for reports and schedules, it can be replaced with a Pride-themed one.
3. Play Pride Trivia with Team
Pride Month trivia games foster team building and a sense of camaraderie among participants.
Who is the mind behind the rainbow-colored Pride flag? Whose marriage paved the way for legalizing same-sex marriage? Why are we celebrating Pride Month every June?
These types of Pride Month games brought a sense of awareness of the LGBTQ+ milestones and rich history.
4. Avoid Performative Gestures
While we value every support we can get during this Pride Month, it's equally important to show sincere and genuine actions to our colleagues at work.
Performative gestures may seem to trivialize the experiences of the LGBTQ+ community.
Authentic support involves respect, understanding, and ongoing learning of queer history, rights, and their causes.
5. Share LGBTQ+ History Bios
During this Pride Month celebration, look back on important personalities who significantly contributed to the LGBTQ+ community.
Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera are two important figures of the Stonewall riots, often credited as among the first people to throw a brick at the police.
Billie Jean King was the first openly gay athlete, Harvey Milk was the first openly gay politician, and Christine Jorgensen was among the first publicly known transgender.
6. Encourage Pronoun Sharing
Encouraging employees to practice sharing pronouns during an introduction to the workplace is a small yet impactful step to inclusivity.
It is disrespectful to someone's gender identity if you use, especially if on purpose, the incorrect pronoun to address them [1].
You can always politely ask the person to remind you which pronouns they use.
It may initially sound awkward, but it is a vital step in creating an inclusive environment for LGBTQ+ people in the workplace.
7. Collaborate with LGBTQ Businesses
Collaborating with the businesses owned by LGBTQ+ people contributes to the economic empowerment of both businesses.
It leads to more jobs that can support more LGBTQ+ people in the long run.
You can search for businesses and help feature their products and services in exchange for their support to your company through promotions and joint events.
8. Avoid Stereotyping, Embrace Diversity
Stereotyping is not limited to trans and queer communities; it affects everyone at work.
Instead of stereotyping and generalizing our colleagues based solely on their sexual orientation or gender identity, we should take this time to acknowledge people's abilities and accomplishments.
Embrace an individual's artistic expression, talent, and uniqueness to help them better express their authentic selves.
9. Volunteer for LGBT Nonprofits
During this Pride Month, you can encourage employees to participate in a corporate volunteer day for local nonprofit organizations. It is also a good opportunity for team building among the employees.
You don't necessarily have to contribute professional skills. You can also use your hobby and teach a recreational activity to the people.
Read: Our Favorite Pride Month Gift Ideas
10. Share Pride Quotes On Social Media
Corporations can also celebrate Pride Month by sharing inspiring quotes, educational resources, and personal stories using the company's social media platforms.
By doing so, your messages of love and acceptance create awareness and improve employee morale within the workplace.
11. Watch Inspirational Speeches & Discuss
The influential voices of various historical figures, activists, and allies throughout history were among the reasons we are celebrating Pride Month openly today.
Despite the adversaries we are still facing as a community, these speeches are enough proof that we are not alone in our fight for acceptance and equal rights.
12. Educate Team On Inclusive Language
Language is vital in promoting an inclusive and respectful environment for everyone at work.
We may not always be aware of someone's sexual orientation, especially if they are newly hired or someone from a different branch or department.
Using plural pronouns in emails and a passive voice in some sentences (to avoid gendered statements) are other forms of supporting gender inclusiveness [2].
13. Support LGBTQ+ Businesses
Pride Month or not, it has always been an excellent practice to patronize local LGBTQ+ businesses you love.
It could be cafes, boutiques, restaurants, bookstores, or service providers owned by LGBTQ+ people.
The LGBTQ+ community indeed suffers from workplace discrimination and bullying in a regular workplace, so supporting the businesses they have established contributes to their economic growth.
14. Coordinate Pride Book Club
Set up a Pride Month book club with regular meetups and start with books that will help you learn more about the history of the LGBTQ+ community.
These books are some of my recommendations: "The Gay Revolution" by Lillian Faderman, "And the Band Played On" by Randy Shilts, and "When We Rise" by Cleve Jones.
15. Organize Pride Reading Club
Together with your friends and colleagues, partner up with your local pride organization, libraries, and schools to set up a Pride Month Reading Club.
It is similar to your Pride Book Club, but you can extend your reach to more people now.
With various books, articles, or other community resources, you are setting up a platform for your community to learn and understand more about LGBTQ+ people.
16. Join Virtual Pride Parades
We used to celebrate Pride Month online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
And even now that we can finally celebrate face to face, we can still participate in a virtual Pride parade happening from different parts of the world.
To fully enjoy the experience, dress up in your most comfortable yet colorful outfit as you celebrate the Pride movement with all the joys of the global LGBTQ+ community.
17. Celebrate With Pride Happy Hour
Casual gathering during Happy Hour lets you unwind and talk about LGBTQ+ achievements with your colleagues, friends, and family.
It helps you reflect on how the community has evolved and reaffirm our commitment to acceptance and diversity.
Make the Happy Hour more lively by having the employees create colorful cocktails and rainbow-themed drinks, vibrant Pride decorations, and a song playlist featuring LGBTQ+ artists and musicians.
18. Fundraise For Charitable Causes
As mentioned, the LGBTQ+ community has been facing various challenges through the years.
One of the ways we can support the community is to organize fundraisers, online campaigns, and charity runs.
By fundraising for charitable causes, we can support, encourage creativity, and actively contribute to the wellness and betterment of the community.
Getting your corporate values and company culture aligned provides a sense of security for employees.
19. Use Fun Pride Zoom Backgrounds
Among virtual Pride Month ideas, this one brings the fun of Pride celebration for remote teams and those working in the office simultaneously.
Change your Zoom background with colorful rainbow-themed images during online meetings as a fun way to celebrate Pride Month at work too. You can also edit the company logo to match the Pride flag.
You might also want to use inclusive messages, vibrant Pride flags, or iconic LGBTQ+ landmarks during an online interaction with your colleagues.
20. Enhance LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group
By definition, an Employee Resource Group (ERG) is composed of employees who share the same interest, beliefs, or characteristics.
If your company or workplace already has an LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group, actively participate and contribute to its enhancement.
You can plan an inclusion workshop or community outreach with your fellow participants while promoting inclusivity and acceptance.
21. Learn Pride History Together
Fighting for equality and acceptance requires us to trace the beginning of the gay liberation movement.
As early as 1924, there were already movements pursuing the rights of LGBTQ+ people. But only in June of 1969 shifted the activism of the LGBT community in the United States [3].
After witnessing the harassment of the police force as they arrested employees and patrons of Stonewall Inn, the watching crowd started fighting back with coins, debris, and bottles.
The riot continued for the next five days and eventually led to these days when we celebrate Pride Month every June.
22. Feature Impactful Inclusion Speaker
Seek out a community leader, advocate, or activist who can share their unique perspective and promote acceptance and inclusiveness to others.
Check out speakers like Nicola Adams (the first openly LGBTQ+ Olympic Boxing Gold medalist), Nigel Owens (the first openly gay rugby referee), and Charlie Martin (the first transgender motorsports racer).
23. Send Postcards to LGBTQ Communities
Show your solidarity through colorful postcards where you can write uplifting messages of love and acceptance to LGBTQ+ people in your workplace.
Although it may seem like an easy thing to do, you never know how a single encouraging message from someone can affect an individual.
24. Respect Non-Participation, No Force
Understand that not everyone is comfortable engaging in Pride Month events and activities.
Encourage the company to create a discrimination and diversity policy if they don't have it yet.
Give space for a colleague's personal preference. It is vital to give everyone the freedom to express themselves and be comfortable with their level of involvement.
25. Stand in Solidarity with Trans Community
As mentioned, someone doesn't need to participate in Pride Month activities and celebrations to show their support.
There are other ways to stand in solidarity with the queer community, like ensuring that LGBTQ+ people feel respected and valued in their workplace.
Avoiding gender stereotypes is another way to celebrate Pride and ensure that the workplace remains a safe space for everyone.
26. Respect Privacy, Avoid Spotlight
Although we like the support of our colleagues while we celebrate during this Pride Month, it is also essential that we respect their space.
Again, not everyone is comfortable participating in the Pride celebrations, and we must respect each individual.
Putting them in the spotlight when they are not comfortable is embarrassing and disrespectful to them.
27. Expand Diversity Training Program
Take advantage of your organization and advocate for the inclusion of diversity training programs, or if your organization already has one, aim for its expansion.
Collaborate with the HR and propose a seminar, inclusion workshop, or online course that promotes diversity, inclusivity, and understanding of employees with different sexual orientations.
28. Watch LGBT Movies Together
Countless movies are available on many streaming platforms like Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video, and the choices can get overwhelming.
So when it comes to that, you can start with a box-office success like Bohemian Rhapsody starring Rami Malek [4]. The movie has already generated over $900 million worldwide as it tells the story of Freddie Mercury.
29. Collaborate For Pride Playlist
Celebrating Pride Month at work calls for a good playlist. If you know artists and musicians, especially aspiring ones, don't hesitate to give them your full support.
Share this Pride playlist with your friends, family, and colleagues as you celebrate Pride Month and beyond.
30. Launch A Pride Swag Contest
Rainbow Pride Self-Adhesive Costume Mustache
Add a touch of playfulness to your Pride ensemble with this self-adhesive swag mustache. It makes for fun conversation starters with your colleagues.
Rainbow Pride Multi-Color Costume Bob Wig
Express diversity through this multi-color bob wig fabulously and fashionably. The wig features the iconic rainbow colors, making it a colorful accessory for any Pride party.
Rainbow Pride Barbara Multi-Color Costume Wig
Whether you will attend a Pride parade or spend time with your family, this Barbara multi-color wig is an excellent accessory.
Rainbow Gay Pride Costume Jewelry Beads
If your outfit still feels lacking or bland, include this colorful costume jewelry to complete a vibrant and lively appearance. Depending on your costume or outfit, you can wear it as a bracelet or necklace.
FAQs
Why do we celebrate Pride Month in the workplace?
We celebrate Pride Month in the workplace to support the LGBTQ+ community, promote diversity and inclusivity, and raise awareness.
It is an opportunity to show the LGBTQ+ that they work in a safe environment where they can fully express themselves without fearing discrimination or bullying.
How do you acknowledge Pride Month in the workplace?
You can acknowledge Pride Month in the workplace by decorating the office with rainbow-colored designs, organizing a virtual or mini Pride parade, and joining fundraising for a charitable cause.
Celebrating diversity also includes empowerment in all aspects, like the financial, physical, and emotional well-being of working LGBTQ+ people.
Final Thoughts
By embracing diversity in our workplace, we can create a safe and inclusive space for our colleagues to celebrate and improve their abilities and talents.
During Pride Month celebrations, always remember to respect the personal boundaries of each individual.
Grab this Disney Lilo & Stitch Funko Pop Vinyl Figure| Pride Stitch, and let our favorite experiment join the Pride Month celebration. Bring Pride Stitch to your office desk to make it more colorful during celebrations.
For more Funko Pop figures and other Pride-themed items, visit Tonyk and enjoy free shipping in the United States (except Hawaii and Alaska).
References:
- https://uwm.edu/lgbtrc/support/gender-pronouns/
- https://www.un.org/en/gender-inclusive-language/guidelines.shtml
- https://www.britannica.com/story/why-is-pride-month-celebrated-in-june
- https://www.statista.com/statistics/977911/highest-grossing-lgbtq-movies-of-all-time/
