5 votes

Apple releases two new Pride Edition Sport Bands for Apple Watch

5 comments

  1. [4]
    unknown user
    Link
    I've always been a big fan of these pride edition bands. This year's options look especially good. Thoughts on the product? Another question: how do you feel about companies promoting pride in...

    I've always been a big fan of these pride edition bands. This year's options look especially good. Thoughts on the product?

    Another question: how do you feel about companies promoting pride in products? Good corporate inclusivity, or cynical marketing tactic? Or both?

    4 votes
    1. [2]
      AugustusFerdinand
      Link Parent
      While corporations are made up of people and people are generally good, that doesn't make corporations into people or make the corporation good. Corporations are beholden to profits and...

      how do you feel about companies promoting pride in products? Good corporate inclusivity, or cynical marketing tactic? Or both?

      While corporations are made up of people and people are generally good, that doesn't make corporations into people or make the corporation good. Corporations are beholden to profits and shareholders only. Does the fact that they present a pride friendly item in western countries make up for the fact that Robert Bock and Christian Juul (head of middle east marketing at Nike and Apple respectively) will never even see these bands as they'd involve defying the anti-LGBT attitudes and laws in the middle east likely guaranteeing the loss of their entire business there?

      Apple and Nike are supporting LGBTQ organizations including GLSEN, PFLAG, The Trevor Project, Gender Spectrum, The National Center for Transgender Equality, and ILGA World.

      While this is noted in the article, it doesn't say how. Is some (all?) of the profits from these bands donated to these groups?

      7 votes
      1. unknown user
        Link Parent
        I wish somehow we could change this definition for the 21st century. It's very clear that these sort of purely-profit driven mandates are bad on every level—environmentally, socially, ethically...

        Corporations are beholden to profits and shareholders only.

        I wish somehow we could change this definition for the 21st century. It's very clear that these sort of purely-profit driven mandates are bad on every level—environmentally, socially, ethically (and more). More companies should consider becoming Social Purpose Corporation's, or certify themselves against a private standard like B Corp.

        4 votes
    2. kfwyre
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      I find overt rainbow iconography a bit loud for my personal tastes (but fully support other people rocking it!). I do, however, absolutely love a subtle rainbow. As such, the first one isn't...

      I find overt rainbow iconography a bit loud for my personal tastes (but fully support other people rocking it!). I do, however, absolutely love a subtle rainbow. As such, the first one isn't something I'd wear, but I absolutely adore the more subdued second one. I don't even have an Apple Watch, but I want that band!

      As for companies promoting Pride, I'm generally of the "don't look a gift horse in the mouth" mindset. If people want to support me, I welcome it. It wasn't too long ago that we didn't see overt and widespread public messages of affirmation, so feeling targeted and pandered to in a good way is kind of nice.

      That said, "pinkwashing" is a real thing and I fully understand being skeptical of campaigns that commodotize our identities. I just finished with the book We Were Feminists Once by Andi Zeisler which is about the corporate and capitalistic co-opting of feminism, and I do see a lot of similar stuff happening with the LGBT movement as well. I think this has put people on guard a bit, and rightfully so, but I don't think we should cynically throw out all support as meaningless or duplicitious, especially if it's coming from a company with a longstanding history of support. Some companies have been frontrunners in advancing LGBT causes for their employees and at large, long before it was popular to do so.

      The Human Rights Campaign publishes a Corporate Equality Index annually to evaluate companies on their policies and practices for LGBT individuals. Back in 2002, the first year they published the index, Apple was one of only 13 companies to receive a top score of 100 (PDF). Likewise, Microsoft has an LGBT employee group that started back in the 80s, and they lobbied the company to successfully offer benefits to same-sex partners in 1993. 1993! The tech industry at large has had a lot of companies that were ahead of the curve on LGBT issues. I've long admired their leadership in this regard.

      Should these actions exonerate the sins of Apple or Microsoft or other companies in other areas? No. Apple and Microsoft and all those other companies definitely still have areas in which they are worthy of criticism. However, I don't think we should casually dismiss their shows of support as hollow or contrived either. Their actions have benefitted our community at large, and in particular have brought quality of life and peace of mind to the careers of many of the LGBT people who have worked for them. Being able to be out at work and comfortable in your career was, for a long time, a luxury for LGBT people. For a long time we stayed closeted, and we expected and abided mistreatment.

      I used to live in a very homophobic place, and shortly after I came out I faced retaliation by a very homophobic person who made up allegations about me in an attempt to get me fired. I was incredibly lucky to have a supportive boss who saw through their transparently prejudicial plan, but I just as well could have been under the leadership of someone who either harbored similar prejudice against people like me or someone who would have chosen to let me go to avoid the potential blowback had the situation escalated. Many people have not been so lucky and have lost their livelihoods in similar situations, or for even less.

      To know that companies have taken a proactive stance to support their LGBT employees, even when facing social and financial costs to do so, does mean something to me. Actions like that have helped to propel a tide that has made workplaces safer for people in our community, so that we don't have to worry about mistreatment in our life's work simply because of who we are. We're not fully there yet, but we're a lot further along that path than we used to be. I'm grateful that is the direction we're headed, and even if the agents who have helped us move in that direction are flawed, I'll still respect their part in that process.

      4 votes
  2. JXM
    Link
    I think they both look great, but I can't bring myself to pay $50 for a piece of rubber (even if it's fancy rubber).

    I think they both look great, but I can't bring myself to pay $50 for a piece of rubber (even if it's fancy rubber).

    1 vote