June is Pride Month and we were fortunate to be joined today by Nadine Smith, Founder and Executive Director of Equality Florida, the largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer community. In 2022, Nadine was also named one of the 100 Most Influential People in the world by Time Magazine.
This has been an eventful month for LGBTQ+ issues, not all of them positive, and we discussed many of them today. After all the efforts by President Trump and Governor DeSantis to stamp out DEI in all facets of society, business, and government, there has been a notable pullback of corporate support for Pride, and yet, celebrating Pride seems more popular than ever among all people. Stores like COSTCO, which continued its support for DEI, are thriving while stores like Target, which dropped much of its support for DEI and Pride, are suffering from consumer rejection. Is this really the end of Rainbow Capitalism, and if so, does it matter? “I would make a distinction between, you know the virtue untested that has now revealed that instead of those being values, they were just marketing points,” Nadine pointed out. “But I think we also get to see the companies that really meant it. The ones who refused to capitulate. The ones who have doubled down. Costco is one that you’ve mentioned, and they’re reaping the benefit of that. So, I think you know there are a couple of things. One is when folks show up and say they are with you, that means you’ve got to stand up when it’s a little bit harder to, and for those companies, I think people will remember.”
Skrmetti is the recent US Supreme Court case that upheld a Tennessee law that banned gender-affirming care for minors. Tennessee is one of 27 states, like Florida, that have restricted gender affirming care for trans people. We asked Nadine about the effect of the Skrmetti case and the irony of Florida and Republicans always pushing for “parental rights,” except in the context of children’s health care, where they insist that “government knows best.” She replied: “When it comes to what is best for you as a parent, when it comes to what’s best for your kid. You want the best access to the best health care, all of the information that you need, and your child needs, to determine the best course of action. What you shouldn’t have to do, and this is true whether it’s health care for a trans young person or access to abortion. What you don’t need is the Governor and State lawmakers, overriding the best medical information and possibility for you, overriding what you know is best for yourself, and in this case, for minors, what parents know is best. This is a purely political decision that ignores the health and safety of young people and instead replaces a parent’s judgment with the law.”
You can listen to our entire conversation with Nadine Smith on demand here, from the MidPoint archives, on the WMNF app, or as a WMNF MidPoint podcast on Spotify or Apple Music. You can hear more from Nadine in her WMNF radio show and podcast, Wide Awake America, and follow her Substack at WideAwakeAmerica.org.
More information from Equality Florida can be found here. St. Pete Pride is this weekend with the signature event, the Pride parade, and a Trans March on Saturday, and the street festival on Sunday. Find more info on all of these events here.
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