Dear John,

As you know, OutRight is celebrating Pride a little differently this year. Instead of Pride marches, we’re protesting racial injustice and police brutality against Black people, lifting up our history as a movement started by trans women of color, and insisting that there can be no Pride without a commitment to racial justice and Black lives. Instead of a Gala, we’re mobilizing support for LGBTIQ people who are suffering from the impacts of COVID-19 around the world. But Pride cannot be canceled - instead, we are commemorating #PrideWithAPurpose. Here are two exciting ways you can help OutRight make Pride meaningful this month:

Join OutRight, P&G and iHeart Radio on June 25 at 9pm ET for Can’t Cancel Pride: Helping LGBTQ+ People in Need! 

June is Pride month - four weeks usually filled with parades, protest marches and a variety of other expressions for the dignity, equality and human rights of LGBTIQ people. It is a time for LGBTIQ movements to reflect on the progress achieved so far, and build momentum for the much needed change still to come. It is also a time when allies from different sectors, including the private sector, recommit to LGBTIQ equality.

OutRight is thrilled to partner with P&G and iHeart Radio on the “Can’t Cancel Pride” campaign. While physical events are cancelled this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, nothing can cancel Pride or what it stands for. In this spirit, on June 25 at 9pm ET, P&G and iHeart Radio, along with numerous other partners and supporters, will host a virtual event featuring inspirational voices and images from the LGBTQ community and allies - including from OutRight.

The event will also showcase global talent, including co-hosts Laverne Cox and Elvis Duran, Katy Perry, Adam Lambert, Ricky Martin, Sia, Big Freedia, Billy Porter, and Melissa Etheridge, among others.

The surrounding #CantCancelPride campaign, which will run throughout June culminating with the event on June 25, aims to raise $5 million for LGBTIQ equality and racial justice, with proceeds going to six different civil society organizations including OutRight. 

You can also invite your network by sharing the event widely using this post: Tune in with @OutRightIntl on June 25 at 9pm ET to @proctergamble and @iheartradio’s #CantCancelPride on Hulu, iHeartRadio’s Facebook and Instagram pages, iHeartRadio’s PrideRadio.com or app, and donate to OutRight at cantcancelpride.com. Post photos of your viewing using the hashtag #CantCancelPride and tag @OutRightIntl.

Join OutRight’s #PrideWithAPurpose Campaign to Help our Global LGBTIQ Community

OutRight launched our #PrideWithAPurpose campaign to call attention to the suffering LGBTIQ people are facing around the world due to COVID-19. We invite you, our entire community and allies to amplify the campaign and take action. As OutRight’s research shows, LGBTIQ people are disproportionately and adversely affected by the pandemic, and many organizations serving our community are on the brink of survival - threatening to set our movement for equality back by years. In addition to documenting the pandemic’s unqiue impact on LGBTIQ people, OutRight established a COVID-19 Global LGBTIQ Emergency Fund to provide urgent humanitarian assistance to grassroots queer and trans organizations on the frontlines - and for many, there is no other place they can turn to for support. So far, OutRight has distributed 60 grants, supporting more than 20,000 people in 45 countries. But we received more than 1,500 applications, totaling $12 million in need - which is where you come in. 

OutRight is doing everything we can to raise more money so that we can help more LGBTIQ organizations, communities and people around the world. We believe it's up to us to ensure that our queer and gender diverse family is not left behind in the response to this crisis. Our goal is to raise at least $1 million by June 30. Please help us by contributing to the Fund, becoming an OutRight #PrideWithAPurpose Ambassador and  inviting others to help the global LGBTIQ community during Pride Month.

Let’s remember that Pride was always more than a celebration - it was in fact sparked by a riot against injustice and a demand for equality and human rights for LGBTIQ people. This year - and every year - let’s come together to ensure that Pride includes and uplifts all of us, and that we don’t stop fighting until everyone in our community is safe, free, and celebrated equally in the beauty and fullness of their identity. Thank you for supporting OutRight and our movement now, and always.