What the Biden administration formally declared as “pride month” has come to an end, leaving behind weeks of controversies as U.S. government agencies, members of the Biden administration, and companies pushed the envelope and the LGBTQQIAAP2S+ agenda on Americans.
Below Breitbart News compiled some of the highlights from 2023’s “pride month,” which in many cases was met with severe backlash — from boycotts to continued criticisms.
1. President Joe Biden kicked off “pride month” with a proclamation, which he used to criticize states for protecting children from mutilation completed under the guise of “affirmation.”
President Joe Biden speaks at a Pride Month celebration on the South Lawn of the White House, Saturday, June 10, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Biden did not even try to hide his administration’s agenda, continually using the far-left’s favorite embraced term “equity” in lieu of “equality.” In the proclamation, Biden brought the transgender issue to the forefront, criticizing states that are enacting laws to protect children from life-altering, so-called “treatments,” including puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and in some cases, surgery.
“In 2023 alone, State and local legislatures have already introduced over 600 hateful laws targeting the LGBTQI+ community. Books about LGBTQI+ people are being banned from libraries. Transgender youth in over a dozen States have had their medically necessary health care banned,” Biden said in the proclamation.
Florida stands as one of the states that have taken such action, banning the mutilation of minors in the name of “gender affirmation” via S.B. 254, which Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law this year.
Biden’s critique should come as no surprise, as he described such actions as “close to sinful” in March.
2. Target goes full corporate queering, offering transgender bathing suits for adults as well as pride-themed items for children.
Target stood as one of the most controversial companies this pride month, offering a vast pride collection with items not seen in years past. For instance, Target this year offered a swimsuit advertised as “tuck-friendly,” designed for males who wish to mimic females. It also offered swimsuits with “light binding” swim apparel for females who wish to flatten their breasts to appear more masculine.
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In addition to offering apparel for children and babies, the store also offered children’s pieces subtly pushing the transgender agenda, and items contained labels reading, “Thoughtfully Fit on Multiple Body Types and Gender Expressions,” as Breitbart News extensively reported.
3. Target severed ties with a Satanist pride collection partner, who now claims not to be a Satanist.
Target initially partnered with the UK-based designer Abprallen. The individual behind the brand identifies as a transgender gay man, who insists that “Satan loves you” and “Satan respects pronouns.” Some of the designs offered by Target included a shirt reading, “Cure Transphobia, Not Trans People.” However, a closer look at the brand shows other designs not sold at Target, which included the Satanic figure Baphomet with text reading “Satan respects pronouns.” Target eventually removed the pride-themed items associated with the designer before “pride month” even officially began, and the designer attempted to claim not to believe in Satan.
“Coming up with this phrase really helped make Abprallen what it is today,” the designer wrote in an Instagram post, describing her “Satan respects pronouns” design.
“Satan loves you and respects who you are; you’re important and valuable in this world and you deserve to treat yourself with love and respect. LGBT+ people are so often referred to as being a product of Satan or going against God’s will, so fine. We’ll hang with Satan instead,” Abprallen added.
The designer also asserted that Satan is simply a “symbol of passion, pride, and liberty” before asserting she is not a Satanist, as Breitbart News reported:
Carnell previously stated that Satanists do not actually believe in Satan anyway. Notably, the Satanic Temple itself states that it does not believe in Satan “or the supernatural” either. Rather, it also views Satan as a symbol — namely one of “the Eternal Rebel in opposition to arbitrary authority, forever defending personal sovereignty even in the face of insurmountable odds.”
According to MSN, the designer opted to use “satanic imagery in some of his art to subvert a homophobic narrative that queer people are sinful, evil or otherwise ungodly.”
4. Several federal agencies kicked off “pride” month with gushy social media posts featuring the “Progress Pride” flag.
The “Progress Pride” flag features additional colors, representing transgender individuals and minorities who feel excluded from the original.
“June marks #PrideMonth! We recognize the perseverance of those who continue to stand and push for the equal rights of all LGBTQI+ persons globally. LGBTQI+ rights are human rights,” the State Department wrote on social media, with an image showcasing the colors of the “Progress Pride” flag. Several other agencies — including the Department of Education and Justice Department — followed suit:
5. PetSmart also joined its corporate counterparts in pushing “pride,” urging pet owners to “celebrate pride with your pet” and offering a range of rainbow-themed accessories.
Items offered to “celebrate” included a pride dog bikini and a “pride vibes” tank top for reptiles. Further, PetSmart touted its “You Are Loved Collection,” in which they revealed they are donating $200,000 donation to GLSEN, “an organization founded by teachers who, according to the organization itself, ‘knew that educators play key roles in creating affirming learning environments for LGBTQ youth,’” as Breitbart News detailed.
6. The children’s show Sesame Street chose to celebrate pride amid ongoing backlash, also sharing an image of the “Progress Pride” flag in a social media post.
“On our Street, we celebrate inclusion, belonging, and freedom of authentic self-expression. Happy #PrideMonth to all the people in our neighborhoods!” it wrote.
As Breitbart News detailed:
As Breitbart News reported, Sesame Street already wokeified itself earlier this month with a series of posts extolling LGBTQ Pride when it featured queer actress Ariana DeBose talking alongside Elmo.
“Hi! Elmo and I wanted to share that everyone is always welcome on Sesame Street,” DeBose said. “This month and every month, we want to uplift and celebrate our LGBTQIA+ family, friends, and communities.” Elmo added, “From our Sesame Street family to yours, happy pride. Elmo loves you.”
“Everyone is always welcome on Sesame Street. Let’s celebrate LGBTQIA+ people in our communities this Pride and every day! Happy #PrideMonth,” the official account caption said.
7. Bud Light lost its number-one beer spot after the Dylan Mulvaney controversy.
While this occurred prior to “pride month,” the backlash against Bud Light set the table for a contentious month as Americans expressed their annoyance at companies pushing the woke LGBT agenda. It started after Mulvaney, a formerly gay man who now identifies as a woman, announced that Bud Light sent him a can with his face on it to celebrate his 365th day of womanhood.
Boycotts ensued, and Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth eventually issued a mea culpa, asserting that they “never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people.” Still, Bud Light sales declined, and Modelo Especial took the lead as the best-selling beer in the U.S.
8. United States Army Special Operations Command posted the inclusive pride flag on all its social media accounts.
The caption read, “USASOC recognizes June as Pride month, celebrating all LGBTQ+ members in our formations. Throughout American history, LGBTQ+ members have not only fought for the right to serve openly, but have also fought in every major war and conflict.”
As Breitbart News noted, “The flag included the ‘intersex’ symbol, which is a purple circle on a yellow background. The flag was posted along with USASOC’s insignia.”
9. Nude cyclists performed in front of children at the LGBT pride parade in Seattle, Washington.
Video shows naked men exposing their genitals in front of children. The videos on social media do, in fact, contain nudity.
10. This month, LGBT activists at New York City’s annual Drag March put out an ominous warning, declaring that they are “coming for your children.”
Chanters could be heard repeating the mantra, “We’re here, we’re queer, we’re coming for your children.”
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11. Coors Light also proceeded in participating in the Denver Pride Parade, which featured other well-known corporate sponsors.
Those sponsors included Nissan, Sheraton, Visa, COBank, Safeway, Chevron, Amazon, JP Morgan Chase, Credit Union of Colorado, REI, Verizon, AARP, Colorado Public Radio, United Airlines, Xfinity, and more.
The event advertised areas for children, including the “Walmart Family Area” as well as a “Rainbow Alley Youth Area.” One of the main stage headliners included a drag queen who goes by the name Salina EsTitties.
12. President Biden’s transgender Assistant Secretary for Health for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) asserted in June that “gender-affirming care” is necessary for children.
According to Rachel Levine — a biological man who believes he is a woman — hormone therapy, puberty blockers, and sex changes are “medically necessary, safe and effective for transgender and non-binary youth and adults.”
RELATED: Rachel Levine Pushes Doctors, Pediatricians to Be “Proactive” “Ambassadors” for Trans Ideology
13. San Francisco first responders saluted a “Progress Pride” flag this month for what the sheriff’s office described as its “THIRD ANNUAL PRIDE FLAG RAISING.”
WATCH: San Francisco Police Raise, Salute Pride Flag amid Rampant Crime
Meanwhile, crime and homelessness runs rampant in the city.
14. Transgender activist goes topless at the White House.
Rose Montoya, a biological man who believes he is a female, attended the White House pride event and joined other transgender individuals in flashing their bare chests. Montoya can be seen in a video shaking his fake breasts alongside transgender men — biological females who believe they are males — showing their scars from chest surgery.
Montoya defended his action, asserting that he was “simply living in joy, living my truth, and existing in my body.”
Despite that, the White House banned him and others from future events following the backlash.
“It is not reflective of the event we hosted to celebrate LGBTQI+ families or the other hundreds of guests who were in attendance. Individuals in the video will not be invited to future events,” the statement read in part.
15. Rachel Levine declared a “summer of pride.”
“Happy Pride! Happy Pride Month, and actually — let’s declare it a summer of Pride. Happy Summer of Pride,” the Assistant Secretary for Health for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), a biological man who believes he is a woman, declared, asserting that a single month of celebration is not enough.
Notably, a recent Convention of States Action/Trafalgar Group survey found that most, 61.9 percent, agree that businesses should remain “neutral on the issue” and refrain from promoting political themes during pride month.