Adidas Pride 2019 campaign champions LGBT people of colour

Adidas for pride.
Sneaker brand Adidas is showing off their love for the LGBTQ community with the release of the Adidas’ 2019 Pride campaign. Featuring rainbow-themed footwear, the colourful apparel of the Pride Pack also happens to be the vision of Gia Goodrich, a gay woman of colour.

“I believe in the adage, ‘Nothing about us without us,” Goodrich told PinkNews. “It’s important to work with creators who are a part of the communities they’re representing”.

The American director and photographer believes that inclusive imagery is the key to LGBT+ advocacy.

“Our industry is dominated by white, cis, hetero dudes telling the stories, our stories. The fact that Adidas made a conscious effort to hire someone who is a part of and vocal advocate for the LGBTQAI+ community is impactful”.

The Pride shoot utilized LGBT+ influencers for its marketing. Recruiting the likes of: DJ Venus X, pro soccer player Taylor Smith, drag performer Flawless Shade, artist Ace Troy, musician The Last artful Dodger and Brandon Harris, the founder of Kiki House of Flora, to be the faces of Adidas’ Pride 2019.

“I believe they [brands] should commit to representation in an intersectional way across ability, age, gender, ethnicity, experience etc. Both in front of the camera and behind the scenes,” she said speaking on improving representation by telling the stories of the people in the campaigns.

“It’s so easy to cast in a way that excludes beautiful and important members of the LGBTQAI2S+ rainbow. That level of commitment is scary for brands because the industry is still very much about a narrowly-defined idea of beauty,” Goodrich said.

“But that is where we are headed if I can have any say in the matter, a world where every identity is visible, validated and celebrated. It’s so important to create spaces for queer representation, but then also to give them the microphone”.

Goodrich and her partner are also strong advocates for Transgender rights. Together, they’ve collaborated on T-shirt apparel “Cis dykes for trans rights”.

“We’re both cis and think it’s really important, especially as lesbians, to be vocal about doing everything we can to support the trans/non-binary community,” said Goodrich.
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