It's only been Pride month for less than a week, yet the news cycle has been saturated with how companies and organizations are celebrating, as some like Kohl's and Target go too far by marketing their items to babies and children. The decision for such stores to promote their products before June even began has left them in trouble, namely when it comes to stocks, as well as boycotts. Target in particular is facing backlash from both the right and the left, from the latter due to claims they've been "selling out." Anheuser-Busch is likewise facing a boycott over partnering with trans activist Dylan Mulvaney and the negative effects from that, though they're also still supporting Pride events as they face having perfect score from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) downgraded.
Another has come onto the scene, though, with a horrifying way to celebrate Pride month, or, as the group in question, a group known as Oxfam International, calls it, "Protect the Pride."
Oxfam International, whose motto is "The future is equal," describes itself as "a global organization that fights inequality to end poverty and injustice." The international version of the homepage for their website greets visitors to the initiative, and directs them to their section on Pride 2023.
"As more and more people around the world are facing lack of safety due to the compounded effects of climate and economic crises, wars, pandemics and other factors. LGBTQIA+ people are among the social groups that lack safety even in the times of peace!," the page reads.
"Safety is a basic human right, that every person, irrespective of their origin and characteristics, is entitled to enjoy. More and more people around the world are facing lack of safety due to the compounded effects of economic and climate crises, wars, pandemics and other factors. Yet, LGBTQIA+ people are among the social groups that lack safety even in the times of peace," the web page indicates further down.
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Even further down, when describing how Pride is marked around the world, the website indicates that:
Safety of LGBTQIA+ people is being compromised at every level – from hate groups preying on queer people online and offline, to governments that introduce laws that target LGBTQIA+ people’s mere right to exist and exercise their human rights; from media that spreads harmful stereotypes that dehumanize and endanger LGBTQIA+ people to individuals, groups and institutions that commit violence against people simply because of their gender and sexuality.
Despite these harsh realities, LGBTQIA+ communities continue to organize, attract supporters and celebrate Pride. In 2021, amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, 107 countries across the world marked Pride.
Under "Why is it Important?," visitors are invited to watch a YouTube video on "Protect the Pride" for 2023 and given the following explanation:
As a global movement against inequality, we can’t ignore the cruel backdrop against which LGBTQIA+ people continue marking Pride. Oxfam believes that a more equal and just world is only possible when people of all sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions have agency over their lives and can receive protection in the times of crises. Because none of us are safe until all of us are safe.
This June, we call to #ProtectThePride. This campaign is our opportunity to bring the spotlight to the lack of safety of LGBTQIA+ across the world and to #TakePride in best global practices that contribute to availing more protections and safety to LGBTQIA+ people. Subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on the social media if you’re interested to take part in the campaign!
There's also options for visitors to check out "Queer Safety Affirmations Cards," which include varieties such as "I Take Pride in Who I Am," "I Choose a Climate of Love," "I Know My Community Has My Back," and "I Deserve a Safe Space." Downloadable wall papers are also available.
Any good intentions go right out the window though, as the organization is now trending on Twitter, and not in the most flattering way, as our friends at Twitchy have highlighted. That video, full of a mix of fear-mongering as well as demands for people to do more for the "LGBTQIA+" community, is an updated version. Initially it contained a caricature JK Rowling wearing a TERF (trans-exclusionary radical feminist) pin, and, possibly Andy Ngo, the latter who is an openly gay man.
Nice try deleting it, Oxfam. The internet is forever. pic.twitter.com/khiME1Ipjj
— Frances Weetman (@francesweetman) June 6, 2023
The relevant part of the 58-second video comes in at at 14 seconds, and in addition to Frances Weetman's tweeting out of the full video, plenty of people have taken screenshots of the particularly damning part of the video.
The worst thing about the Oxfam Pride cartoon isn't the depiction of JK Rowling - it's the depiction of Andy Ngo. Such imagery would've been racist in 1923, never mind 2023.
— Leo Kearse - see me on YouTube & Headliners (@LeoKearse) June 6, 2023
I guess Oxfam's blue-haired zealots think their crusade so important they're blind to their own bigotry. pic.twitter.com/gjun3yYz55
Oxfam wants to demonize women that believe in free speech and critical thinking.
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) June 6, 2023
It’s clear that @Oxfam cartoon was aimed at vilifying JK Rowling.
The charity has a history of mistreating women, including their former country director for Haiti sexually abusing young girls. pic.twitter.com/oK3vUBJUCG
That's not the only noteworthy part of the video, though, as it also includes an illustration of a young person, who has gone through a mastectomy. The other person in the illustration is wearing a shirt that says "Protect Trans Kids."
Oxfam's sick cartoon promoting breast mastectomy to teenage girls is a continuation of the charity's sexual abuse of local women and girls on a global scale.#OxfamHatesWomen#SexNotGender#NoToSelfId pic.twitter.com/Bn6ykvUWUa
— McCTERF (@IndyLassie) June 6, 2023
Oxfam wasn't entirely quiet about updating the video. A statement from earlier on Tuesday is pinned to their Twitter profile.
OFFICIAL STATEMENT: pic.twitter.com/NbYKspgIuS
— Oxfam International (@Oxfam) June 6, 2023
A previous tweet revealed that they had removed the video "because of concerns raised with us" and would be releasing an updated one, which they still dared to ask users to share.
We have removed the post because of concerns raised with us. We will re-post shortly #ProtectThePride
— Oxfam International (@Oxfam) June 6, 2023
We are posting the updated video below, please re-share to show solidarity with the LGBTQIA+ community. None of us are safe until all of us are safe. This June, we call you to #ProtectThePride! pic.twitter.com/1iN4nFzmiX
— Oxfam International (@Oxfam) June 6, 2023
Still, the response on Twitter through replies, quoted retweets, and trends shows that people are definitely not buying it.
"In efforts to make an important point about the real harm caused by transphobia, we made a mistake," the statement read in part, though that's not how they began it, as they ought to have. "We have therefore edited the video to remove the term TERF and we are sorry for the offense it caused. There was no intention by Oxfam or the film-makers for this slide to have portrayed any particular person or people."
Just as it began, the statement also ended by emphasizing their support for the LGBT movement, including when it comes to their support for "a person's right to have their identity respected, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex characteristics."
An internal email from Retail Director Lorna Fallon, which addresses reporting on the video from the Daily Mail is even more noteworthy, as it apologizes to their employees.
Here is the email sent today to @Oxfam staff by Retail Director Lorna Fallon, Fallon 'addresses' @bindelj's piece on @unherd 'I was hounded out of Oxfam over JK Rowling' and dismisses the backlash against their 'Pride video... in which one character was wearing a TERF badge'. pic.twitter.com/Xf809Xq9a1
— Miranda Yardley (@EmmJayYardley) June 6, 2023
"We are sorry that this coverage may be upsetting, particularly for trans colleagues. Remember that the Retail Trust offers support, and your manager and HR are there for you too," Fallon's email reads. "Once again we are proud to support Pride and uphold trans inclusion. We are loving all the incredible window displays that you have been creating and sharing. Thank you and let's continue to celebrate Pride," the email concludes with.
This isn't Oxfam's first rodeo with denigrating Rowling, and, not even those who dare to stand up for her are safe, as Twitchy pointed out when it comes to how an Oxfam employee was "hounded out" over Rowling.
An @oxfamgb staffer tells her story to @bindelj about how she was subject to a witch hunt after defending JK Rowling
— Maya Forstater (@MForstater) June 5, 2023
https://t.co/8edCqv6CLd
As the report from Julie Bindel in part mentions:
Three years ago, the Harry Potter author found herself accused of transphobia for having supported women who have “concerns around single-sex spaces”. During a discussion on Oxfam’s intranet, [Oxfam charity bookstore employee] Maria had come to the defence of Britain’s most popular living author, asking for evidence of Rowling’s supposed transphobia. It was a decision that prompted a gruelling internal investigation, one in which Maria struggled to clear her name, led to her having a nervous breakdown and leaving both her job and the country.
Further, Oxfam isn't exactly a saintly charity, as multiple reports describe how Oxfam couldn't even receive aid from the United Kingdom due to claims that Oxfam staff were found to have sexually exploited women and girls in Haiti. A thread from June 2021 has since resurfaced describing the allegations.
Oxfam, the charity where high ranking officials sexually abused young girls in Haiti, has released a #ProtectThePride video vilifying women who disagree with gender ideology.
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) June 6, 2023
The video advert features a woman with red eyes wearing a TERF badge.
The charity was accused of… pic.twitter.com/4eDzbkUi8z
Right, let's summarise. Oxfam was banned from receiving UK aid for three years because Oxfam staff were found to have sexually exploited vulnerable people (women and girls) in Haiti. What happened there was utterly appalling. https://t.co/wYqvYBdTEm
— James Barry (@JamesBarry1789) June 11, 2021
A further deep-dive into the incident shows Oxfam focused on blaming "privileged white women" for the root causes.
I've read the articles and the description of the training, and I can only say I'm totally and utterly baffled. Here's a sample slide: pic.twitter.com/7Hjvf1UO3I
— James Barry (@JamesBarry1789) June 11, 2021
Surely they didn't want "#ProtectThePride" to be trending for such a reason, but what else can Oxfam expect when they vilify so terribly those who have legitimate criticisms. Additional trends to do with the original video include particularly unflattrering ones such as "#BoycottOxfam" and "#OxfamHatesWomen," in addition to "JK Rowling" and "Andy Ngo."
