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Woman's viral thread is a moving reminder of when the first companies supported Pride

It wasn't so long ago that public support of Pride was a truly brave and life-affirming choice.

Pride has become overrun by brands, but it wasn't always the case.

Recently, I went with my family to Target, one of our favorite stores. We were only going for a couple of things, but our plans were derailed as soon as we walked in (which is often how it goes at that store). What caught our eyes this time? Target had already put up its Pride display. My partner and I excitedly searched through accessories like sunglasses and mini flags, looking specifically for items featuring the lesbian pride flag. I successfully grabbed an accessory bag plus a pair of rainbow sunglasses for my kiddo before eagerly heading over to the main display.

In recent years, the Target display for Pride has become one of my favorite parts about the month of June. As a queer woman, I like the ease of being able to get something to show my queerness while I’m also picking up household items. It’s nice to be able to buy rainbow kitchen towels that I know I will proudly use all year round. At the same time, I still feel weird about it. Because it goes beyond a T-shirt or a flag. You can’t walk down an aisle without seeing a rainbow adorn something it normally doesn’t—wine, deodorant, even hot sauce.

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