Several corporate sponsors have pulled out of San Francisco’s 2025 Pride Celebration over what the parade’s executive director suspects is due to the country’s changing political climate under the Trump administration.
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San Francisco Pride’s street fair is scheduled for June 28-29, with the famed Pride Parade scheduled for 10 a.m. on the second day. Founded in 1970 as the Gay Freedom Day Parade, the event has grown to become one of the largest and most renowned LGBTQ+ celebrations in the world, attracting up to 1 million visitors each year.
Several previous corporate sponsors — including Comcast, Anheuser-Busch, alcoholic beverage company Diageo and La Crema, a wine company owned by Jackson Family Wines — decided not to participate in this year’s event, Suzanne Ford, executive director of San Francisco Pride, told KTVU reporter Amber Lee in a televised interview Saturday. Representatives for the companies could not immediately be reached for comment.
The companies’ previous donations accounted for about a third of the remaining fundraising goal of $1.2 million, Ford told KTVU, meaning organizers are looking for money elsewhere to pay for Pride weekend’s parties, concerts and parade.
The news comes one week after Pride announced it had ended its relationship with Meta, the giant behind Facebook and Instagram. The tech company eliminated its diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and scaled back its content moderation policies.
President Donald Trump’s second term has been marked by large cuts to arts funding and attempts at censoring organizations it deems offensive. The administration has altered grant requirements at the National Endowment for the Arts and attempted to eliminate DEI programs in federally funded organizations.
The administration has also held up federal funds, cut university resources and erased efforts that promote diversity.
