Pinkwashing (LGBTQ)

instrumentalization of LGBTQIA+ people and their rights

Pinkwashing, also known as rainbow-washing,[1] is the strategy of using messages that are superficially nice to the LGBTQ community for things that have little or nothing to do with LGBTQ equality or inclusion.[2][3]

Origin of the term

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In April 2010, Queers Undermining Israeli Terrorism (QUIT) in the Bay Area, used the phrase pinkwashing as a twist on greenwashing, a practice where companies claim to be eco-friendly in order to make profit. Dunya Alwan was at a talk with Ali Abunimah, editor of Electronic Intifada in 2010, when he said "We won't put up with Israel whitewashing or greenwashing" and she thought, "or pinkwashing!"[4]

Corporate marketing

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Pinkwashing in the United States, according to author Stephan Dahl from the University of Hull, is centered around pride merchandise created and sold by companies that do nothing for queer people.[5][5]

By country or region

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A participant in the 2024 EuroPride in Thessaloniki holding a picket that reads "NO PRIDE IN GENOCIDE".

Israel

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Anarcho-queer collective Mashpritzot hold a Die-in [en] protest against Israeli pinkwashing.

Ireland

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According to Professor of Gender and Women's Studies Eithne Luibhéid, Ireland used its 2015 same-sex marriage referendum, "to pinkwash its migration regimes, thereby naturalizing harsh policies that reproduce gendered, sexual, racial, economic, and geopolitical inequalities".[6]

Intersex movement

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In June 2016, Organisation Intersex International Australia  [ en] pointed to contradictory statements by Australian governments, suggesting that the dignity and rights of LGBT and intersex people are recognized while harmful practices on intersex children continued.[7]

In August 2016, Zwischengeschlecht  [ en] described actions to promote equality or civil status legislation without action on banning "intersex genital mutilations" as a form of pinkwashing.[8] The organization has previously pointed out government[who?] statements to UN Treaty Bodies that conflate intersex, transgender, and other LGBTI issues, instead of addressing harmful practices on infants.[9]

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References

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  1. Rodríguez, Ashley (15 June 2022). "What is Rainbow Washing? And Why You Should Prevent It During Pride Month". rockcontent.com. Archived from the original on 22 June 2023. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
  2. Russell 2019.
  3. "Profit From Pride – Pinkwashing as Part of Modern Marketing". pressrelations Blog. 27 August 2020. Archived from the original on 7 July 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
  4. Ellison, Joy (2013). Recycled rhetoric: brand Israel 'pinkwashing' in historical context (MA thesis thesis). DePaul University.
  5. 5.0 5.1 Dahl, Stephan. "The rise of pride marketing and the curse of 'pink washing'". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  6. Luibhéid 2018.
  7. "Submission: list of issues for Australia's Convention Against Torture review". Intersex Human Rights Australia. 28 June 2016. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  8. seelenlos (28 August 2016). "'Intersex legislation' that allows the daily mutilations to continue = PINKWASHING of IGM practices". Zwischengeschlecht. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
  9. "TRANSCRIPTION: UK Questioned over Intersex Genital Mutilations by UN Committee on the Rights of the Child - Gov Non-Answer + Denial". Zwischengeschlecht. 26 May 2016. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 4 September 2016.