What Do Companies Do When Pride Month Ends? July 1st's Annual Meme Explained

It's July 1st, and online, that means one thing: it's time for companies to retire their rainbow-tinted profile pictures and not talk about the LGBTQ+ community again until the next Pride Month.

What Is The 'Companies When Pride Month Ends' Meme?

Whether or not this is accurate for all companies, internet users have been memeing the belief that major corporations are only paying lip service to LGBTQ+ pride during June, and when July hits, they're thrilled to return to their regularly scheduled "not caring about the queer community."

This was first noticed in 2019, when companies such as AT&T, IBM, PETA, Xbox and others immediately removed their rainbow-tinted profile pictures on social media the moment the clock ticked over to July 1st. On June 30th, Redditor Reilers posted the first known meme to joke about this phenomenon, using the I Don't Even Know Who You Are template.

Since then, the memes have gotten darker, as more memers have characterized corporations as outright malevolent when Pride Month ends.

Are 'Companies When Pride Month Ends' Memes Accurate?

While it may not be fair to say that all corporate advocacy for LGBTQ+ policy evaporates when it's no longer Pride Month, the meme speaks to the general exhaustion people have with corporate lip service to progressive causes that aren't backed up with meaningful action. It's similar to how people can get exhausted with corporate lipservice during Black History Month or on Martin Luther King day, yet make no noticeable contributions to the Black community or Black causes.

One recent example involved the company Bethesda, who in 2020, only changed some of their company's social media accounts to a rainbow flag, but didn't do so in countries where being queer is frowned upon, such as Russia.

The incident demonstrated how corporations use Pride Month as a means to pander to their consumers rather than announce a principled stand on an issue. In America, it would be controversial to not show support of the queer community during Pride Month, but it would be controversial to support it in other parts of the world. Thus, it looked like Bethesda was making a financial decision about where it would be most prudent to support the queer community, rather than being consistent with its support.

That attitude has extended to "Companies When Pride Month Ends" memes, as many memers believe that these companies don't actually believe in supporting the LGBTQ+ community but want to avoid controversy and show token signs of support.

For the full history of companies when Pride Month ends, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.