Speaker 1: You're listening to Comedy Central.
Speaker 2: Now, Happy Pride Month, everyone, or as it's called at
Speaker 2: Mike Pence's house, June Pride is a celebration of queerness,
Speaker 2: acceptance and club remixes you can actually dance to. And
Speaker 2: today I'm here at Rue Paul's private pool to tell
Speaker 2: you how Pride Month came to be because just like
Speaker 2: all queer people, June has a coming out story of
Speaker 2: its own. You could say Pride's roots go back to
Speaker 2: the sixties with Philly's Reminder Day. Pickets. Reminder Day was
Speaker 2: like the precursor to what Pride is now, in the
Speaker 2: same way that Madonna was the precursor to Lady Gaga.
Speaker 2: And if you don't get that reference, you should probably
Speaker 2: stop watching now because this is a Pride segment and
Speaker 2: you're a terrible ally. The sixties also saw protests all
Speaker 2: over America, like the Black Cat Tavern riot in LA
Speaker 2: and a protest at the White House demanding equal employment
Speaker 2: opportunities for gay people. That's right. It used to be
Speaker 2: legal to fire people just for being gay, which makes
Speaker 2: no sense. Who you have sex with should have no
Speaker 2: bearing on whether you get to keep your job unless
Speaker 2: you do it on the copy machine, a well known
Speaker 2: fact that is how most paper jams get started.
Speaker 3: I learned the hard way.
Speaker 2: But then, of course, came Stonewall in sixty nine, when
Speaker 2: police raided a gay bar in New York City called
Speaker 2: the Stonewall In and the queer community fought back. It
Speaker 2: was such a significant moment in America's gay rights movement
Speaker 2: that to this day that whole block is now a
Speaker 2: historic site visited by people from all over the world.
Speaker 2: The only way that corner of Christopher Street would attract
Speaker 2: more gay people is if Britney had a residency there.
Speaker 2: Stonewall was the big turning point, though they still faced
Speaker 2: so much discrimination that LGBTQ community finally felt empowered enough
Speaker 2: to hold big public celebrations. The first ever official gay
Speaker 2: Pride parade was held in Chicago in nineteen seventy, but
Speaker 2: one day later, New York held an entire Pride Week.
Speaker 2: During this seven day celebration, the community marched from the
Speaker 2: village to Central Park with slogans like gay, Gay All
Speaker 2: the Way and gay power, which isn't just a good slogan,
Speaker 2: it's also the energy source that keeps the lights running
Speaker 2: on Broadway. Of course, we can't talk about Pride without
Speaker 2: talking about the symbol of it. No, not your grandparents
Speaker 2: googling what is scissoring. I'm talking about the rainbow flag,
Speaker 2: which was designed in nineteen seventy eight by Gilbert Baker.
Speaker 2: He called himself the gay Betsy Ross, which makes sense.
Speaker 2: Not only did they both design iconic flags, but they
Speaker 2: also belonged to communities where wigs were very popular. One
Speaker 2: of the coolest things about Gilbert Baker was that he
Speaker 2: refused to trademark the Pride flag. He wanted everyone to
Speaker 2: be able to share it and reinterpret it, which is
Speaker 2: why today the flag has become as fluid as sexuality itself.
Speaker 2: By the time we reached the eighties, the AIDS crisis
Speaker 2: came to the forefront, and Pride took on a new mission.
Speaker 2: It wasn't just about visibility and acceptance. It was about
Speaker 2: destigmatizing and promoting public health, which was especially important because
Speaker 2: the federal government pretty much just pretended AIDS didn't exist,
Speaker 2: like what Tom Hanks does with CHET. Once we made
Speaker 2: it to the nineties, Pride was even more mainstream than
Speaker 2: ever before, and in nineteen ninety nine, President Bill Clinton
Speaker 2: signed the executive Order officially recognizing June as Pride Month
Speaker 2: for the first time. Yeah, if two people of the
Speaker 2: same gender wanted to have sexual relations, that was fine
Speaker 2: with him, even if he didn't totally understand the definition
Speaker 2: of sexual relations. I did not have. Clinton's executive order
Speaker 2: referred to June as Gay and Lesbian Pride Month. Then
Speaker 2: in two thousand and nine, President Obama changed it to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual,
Speaker 2: and Transgender Pride Month. Then President Trump dialed it back
Speaker 2: a little and just called it LGBT Pride Month, which
Speaker 2: makes sense, no big words, and it's less scary for
Speaker 2: Mike Pence. But these days the Biden administration extended the
Speaker 2: name again to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Pride Month,
Speaker 2: making it as of now, the only thing that's been
Speaker 2: built back better. But whatever you call it, Pride has
Speaker 2: truly become a global phenomenon. It's celebrated everywhere Manila, South Africa, Brazil, Madrid.
Speaker 2: Pride's gone to so many places. If it had an Instagram,
Speaker 2: you'd have to mute their stories. Get it, Pride, you
Speaker 2: had fun in Spain. Stop making the rest of us
Speaker 2: feel so boring. So this month, don't forget where pride
Speaker 2: came from. And all the people who fought to make
Speaker 2: it a reality. The LGBTQ community still faces many challenges,
Speaker 2: but it's also experienced a lot of progress, and if
Speaker 2: you ask me, that's worth celebrating. Hello, Hello, Hello, you
Speaker 2: palls back from vacation early.
Speaker 3: Hello friends. It's June, which means this is the first
Speaker 3: month of the year where it's just hot enough outside
Speaker 3: to not be sexy. But in America, we know June
Speaker 3: also means gay Pride month. So I want to wish
Speaker 3: everyone I have be pride, and I'm not the only one.
Speaker 3: This year, it feels like every every damned company with
Speaker 3: the logo is going full rainbow. You've probably seen these
Speaker 3: ads like Burger King offering whoppers with two top buns
Speaker 3: and two bottom buns. Listen, it's still bread, and every
Speaker 3: gay band I know is not eating bread in the summer.
Speaker 3: They're doing keto and crunches until I told for But
Speaker 3: don't forget. Companies weren't always jumping on the Pride float
Speaker 3: looking like a Lisa Frank trapper keeper. When the gay
Speaker 3: rights movement first began in nineteen sixty nine, most companies
Speaker 3: were too afraid to advertise the gay people they didn't
Speaker 3: want to offend the rest of America, especially religious conservatives.
Speaker 3: They were so uptight. They thought pretzels are too sexy,
Speaker 3: all those twists. Huh, it's so sinful. So companies kept
Speaker 3: their distance, except for Absolute Vodka. Absolute was one of
Speaker 3: the first big companies to market to the queer community
Speaker 3: because those sweetes don't give a shit about the religious right.
Speaker 3: They were like, who cares if the right doesn't like us?
Speaker 3: All they drink is milk. So thanks to Absolute for
Speaker 3: being true. Ally, it's a good year. I didn't drink
Speaker 3: the whole thing because I got a work meaning after this,
Speaker 3: and they said, I gotta be sober this time. Anyway,
Speaker 3: as gay people became more visible in society, some advertisers
Speaker 3: slowly started reaching out into the community until the AIDS
Speaker 3: epidemic blew up that sick company's flame for the hills again.
Speaker 3: Oh no, what if the gay is looking at our ads?
Speaker 4: Does that how you get ads?
Speaker 3: But you know what company doubled down on their advertising
Speaker 3: during the AIDS crisis, that's right, Absolute Vocal. Hmm, the
Speaker 3: second half got a kick. Damn all right? Where was
Speaker 3: I right? By the nineteen nineties, the queer community had
Speaker 3: once again fought its a greater acceptance, so brands once
Speaker 3: again tried to dip their toes into the pool party,
Speaker 3: but they were still too nervous to jump all the
Speaker 3: way in so American advertising into the phase now known
Speaker 3: as gay they, which sounds a lot like being in
Speaker 3: a fraternity. Basically, it was companies hinting at possible homosexuality,
Speaker 3: like this Volkswagon ad where two dudes are driving in
Speaker 3: a car and then pick up this dirty ass heir
Speaker 3: off the sidewalk. So the ad leaves it open to interpretation.
Speaker 3: Are they roommates?
Speaker 4: Are they lovers?
Speaker 3: Are they roommate lovers? Because that's the worst kind of hookup.
Speaker 3: You gotta wait for them to text you back and
Speaker 3: finish up in the bathroom. Now. A few times during
Speaker 3: this era a brand tried to make an outright gay ad,
Speaker 3: like Benetton and Nikia, and the ad completely won over
Speaker 3: the religious right and they apologized for everything. Psych one
Speaker 3: Ikia and Long Island even got a bomb threat. What
Speaker 3: is wrong with these religious fanatics? They know the furniture
Speaker 3: isn't gay right. Plus, if there's one place that can
Speaker 3: reassemble after a bombing, it's an IKEA Unfortunately for the
Speaker 3: religious right, but luckily for everyone else, their time was ending.
Speaker 3: Over the next two decades, Americans started to realize that
Speaker 3: gay people were just the same as everyone else, except
Speaker 3: with better amps, and as popular opinion improved, companies finally
Speaker 3: felt it was safe enough to take gay money, and
Speaker 3: this time it was major brands. Amazon started advertising the
Speaker 3: gay people, Coca Cola aired commercial with two dads during
Speaker 3: the Super Bowl, and Just Salad even had a big
Speaker 3: gay salad, which, come on, that was just a regular salad.
Speaker 3: At least saw some glitter in it. And that brings
Speaker 3: us to today when practically every company does Pride Month marketing.
Speaker 3: But just because every June a business acts like their
Speaker 3: auditioning for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Code, it
Speaker 3: doesn't mean their values line up with their tweets. Take
Speaker 3: AT and T, for example, they love to show everyone
Speaker 3: how much they support Pride while also giving one million
Speaker 3: dollars to anti LGBTQ politicians and pecks. Or how retailers
Speaker 3: like H and M are launching Pride collections with items
Speaker 3: made in countries that criminalize homosexuality, which is another reason
Speaker 3: where in this ugly ass top should be a crime,
Speaker 3: and they aren't the only hypocrites donating to anti queer causes.
Speaker 3: But hey, why go through all the trouble of listing
Speaker 3: them here. I'm no hater. Oh from that one too. Okay,
Speaker 3: are we done?
Speaker 4: Let's make a mistake.
Speaker 3: The point is enjoy all those gay whoppers and pink toyotas,
Speaker 3: but don't forget what this month is about. Pride is
Speaker 3: the time to celebrate the right to love who you
Speaker 3: want and to honor the people who fought to give
Speaker 3: us that right back when no brand was on their
Speaker 3: side except.
Speaker 4: For absolute.
Speaker 3: Hmm, you know what, what are those gay whoppers? Sounds
Speaker 3: real good about now? I'm dizzy.
Speaker 4: Hi, I'm Jibuki Young White, the Daily Show's senior Rustbell correspondent, JK.
Speaker 4: I'm gay, and so is Pittsburgh. It's Pride month and
Speaker 4: Equality March is the original Pittsburgh Pride. It has bikers, pups, pups, furries, queens, twunks, drunks, cops, bears,
Speaker 4: and fish creatures. But there's one group that not everyone
Speaker 4: is happy about.
Speaker 1: A lot of corporations are capitalizing off pride and off LGBTQ.
Speaker 4: I A plus like merch. I don't know if they're
Speaker 4: just making a lot of money off this. That's what
Speaker 4: the Q and lgbtqq i A stands for corporations. Okay, yeah,
Speaker 4: but surely discriminating against our pride loving corporations can't be
Speaker 4: the answer.
Speaker 2: Pittsburgh Pride of Quality March is for everybody.
Speaker 5: It doesn't matter who you are, where you work, or
Speaker 5: who you love.
Speaker 4: And just so you know, we love corporations. Viacom, You're great,
Speaker 4: keep doing what you do. We're really big fans here
Speaker 4: at the Daily Show. Viacom want love you. So the
Speaker 4: answer is obviously to hug these corporations close. And corporations
Speaker 4: are hugging right that Google, KPMG, Eetna, Lift, not Chick
Speaker 4: fil A. And here comes the truthlay Queen. Walmart is
Speaker 4: Walmart gay.
Speaker 5: Walmart does take pride and their gay associates as a company.
Speaker 3: I don't think you can label a company with a
Speaker 3: sexual orientation.
Speaker 4: Walmart seems like a top to me.
Speaker 5: I would I would agree with that.
Speaker 4: Yeah, And I think it's amazing that so many people
Speaker 4: could come out and just live their truth as a
Speaker 4: marketable demographic for sure, and literally made it like a
Speaker 4: safe place for everybody. I think for us to Yeah, yeah,
Speaker 4: one hundred percent. It's like here, I am, I have
Speaker 4: a debit cross day as hell now and gay's love
Speaker 4: money bitch right right, So queer capitalism is totally chill. Actually,
Speaker 4: there is a specific issue with corporate sponsorship in Pittsburgh
Speaker 4: and it involves the F word. No, not that fracking.
Speaker 1: There's a lot of corporations that are seemingly buying. Last year,
Speaker 1: this march was called the EQT Equality March. EQT doesn't
Speaker 1: stand for equality, it stands for their fracking company.
Speaker 4: Do you think that it's appropriate that a fraking company
Speaker 4: is a sponsor for Pittsburgh Pride? Low?
Speaker 1: I think that is completely inappropriate that a fracking company
Speaker 1: is a sponsor for anything.
Speaker 4: EQT doesn't just shoot hot liquid deep into holes in
Speaker 4: the ground. They also swing both ways by supporting pride
Speaker 4: and various anti gay politicians. So what are people supposed
Speaker 4: to do have a separate pride without corporate sponsors? Some
Speaker 4: say frak.
Speaker 6: Yes, this Pride event represents the people on corporational pride,
Speaker 6: something that centers RTLGBTQ communities of Pittsburgh.
Speaker 4: Do you think corporations can be gay people?
Speaker 6: No, corporations cannot be gay people.
Speaker 4: The people's pride is non corporate, has more color in
Speaker 4: its rainbow. And I found someone who can keep up
Speaker 4: with my moves. But are they turning their back on progress?
Speaker 4: Don't you think it's beautiful that queer people have been
Speaker 4: able to come out and live their truth as a marketable,
Speaker 4: capitalizing demographic.
Speaker 7: No, I would think it would be beautiful if those actions
Speaker 7: were genuine. They want to be a part of what's
Speaker 7: trending right now, right now, being gay as trendy. You know,
Speaker 7: pos is out and there are lots of gay celebrities.
Speaker 7: Now could you name a couple, so a lot of
Speaker 7: the top of my head right now, Big Freida Hider's
Speaker 7: Dayshaun Wesley and Laom Maldonado.
Speaker 4: They don't even want my brand. This is where I
Speaker 4: draw the line. There has to be some way for
Speaker 4: corporations like EQT to prove that they're really committed and
Speaker 4: not just experimenting. Like maybe they just need to show
Speaker 4: that they're really about queer subculture in like a more inventive,
Speaker 4: creative way. So I'm afraid where you're going with this.
Speaker 4: I thought that maybe this could really get across the
Speaker 4: message of what EQUT stands for it's like drilling, but
Speaker 4: also with the I just sew it down to maybe
Speaker 4: that that's right. Progress takes time. Fifty years ago corporations
Speaker 4: wouldn't touch the gay community, and now they can't wait
Speaker 4: to show their love in public. And what better way
Speaker 4: to reciprocate that love than with the EQT Very Speed
Speaker 4: Deep Wracking Drill Deck, brought to you by EQT.
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Speaker 3: Ye yeh