PRIDE Month at Yelp

This year, Yelp celebrated PRIDE month with  a variety of events ranging from intimate discussions with members of OUTburst (Yelp’s employee resource group for the LGBTQ+ community) to a publicly streamed discussion on corporate “rainbow washing” with diversity leaders from large corporations. 

We started off PRIDE month with an employee panel discussion about allyship within the LGBTQ+ community. Allyship has been a hot topic in recent years, but we know that even within a community there’s always room for improvement. The panel shared their thoughts on how folks in their community can be kinder to one another.

Throughout the month OUTburst hosted a series of virtual community check-ins. Employees got together on a weekly basis to discuss different topics including “Do we still need queer spaces?” and “What piece of media has been impactful to your queer journey?” These virtual community check-ins have become a staple at Yelp as we don’t see each other in person much these days, yet we still have a need to connect with one another on topics that matter to us. 

Yelp and Open To All co-hosted a special Pride panel featuring D&I leaders from H&M, Gap Inc., and The Body Shop. During this event panelists discussed the realities of corporate “rainbow-washing,” the responsibility large corporations have to engage in social discourse, and the impact of prioritizing inclusive environments. Watch the recording here. 

Finally, we discussed “The Rocky Road to Equality’.’ We invited Jim Obergefell and Jess Port who are both plaintiffs in important court cases that paved the way to LGBTQ+ equality. In addition, we talked to Emily McGranachan from the nonprofit Family Equality, where they are fighting to protect and support LGBTQ+ families.

Want to make your company more inclusive for LGBTQ+ employees – here are three tips.