In the United States, LGBTQ+ rights have been contested for decades. For example, it wasn’t only until a few years ago that same-sex marriage was federally legalized. However, hate still continues and has been especially prevalent in 2021-2022 with many states banning books that contain learnings around these topics, as well as silencing educators who have lesson plans around it. Further, the recent Supreme Court draft leak that detailed the possible eventual takedown of Roe v. Wade has opened discussions to strike down same-sex marriage. It appears the US is quickly regressing, however, as a sort of cliche, one thing that is making a difference is, a cookie.
Oreo has been promoting pro-LGBTQ messages for around a decade. In recent years, they released limited edition rainbow cookies to celebrate Pride Month. This year, instead of a rainbow, it’s the standard cookie with ‘Pride’ stamped on the front. It wasn’t just a limited edition cookie release, they also partnered with PFLAG, an organization that works with allies and families around LGBTQ issues. They also donated money, released a full website dedicated to LGBTQ education, and released a tear jerking video on YouTube called ‘The Note’.
In my opinion, Oreo is doing quite a bit, and I especially enjoyed their video release. Indeed, as stated above, it’s a tear jerker. It depicts a short story of coming out and intertwining it with being in an immigrant family, something that I don’t believe we talk enough about today. Its other message was the notion of “coming out twice”, an all to real occurrence for many LGBTQ folks. Simply put, displaying feelings and describing who you are once doesn’t mean it’s over. Instead, friends, family, and other involved groups all take it differently and may need to be informed at different times in differing ways. Coincidentally, “coming out twice” may just be a lucky situation.
When visiting this video’s comment section or even browsing the web around Oreo’s release, you may stumble upon quite a bit of “controversy.” That’s giving it to much credence however, as much of the shouting is from republican and conservatives figures, as well as online trolls. In fact, there is no controversy per sae, it’s the loud shrieking of ignorance by a fairly large group of people known to parrot such garbage. You will notice this whenever there is any type of minor social progress or if a company takes a step forward. The question remains however, in this scenario, is Oreo doing the LGBTQ community a favor? Are their intentions genuine?
I would put forth that for the most part, Oreo is moving in the right direction and that their intentions are at least somewhat genuine. Is money a motivation? Perhaps. It should be noted, they could very well lose money with how wacky the political climate has been. From their history, Oreo has made strides in this area for over a decade, even when prime LGBTQ rights like same-sex marriage was being hotly debated.
Checkout my Skittles Pride review here.
