As has been the case across the country, Spokane’s annual Pride event has faced financial uncertainty over the last few months as many major sponsors have decided to halt their recurring sponsorships. If you were to compare the 2024 sponsor list to this year’s, you’d notice the absence of large brands, such as Nütrl (an Anheuser-Busch brand), Walmart and Verizon.
Spokane Pride Executive Director Matt Danielson doesn’t know if these companies are forgoing their Pride support because of the economic instability caused largely by President Trump’s tariffs, to avoid partnerships with “DEI organizations,” or something else entirely. All he knows is that his team has had to work hard to make up tens of thousands of dollars in corporate sponsorships.
“It’s been a roller coaster, but I’m kind of a blind idealist. I know the community will be there. If Pride was suddenly not going to happen, and we put that out there, the community would make Pride happen,” Danielson says. “People care deeply about what we do, and I always knew that deeply — despite the crushing anxiety of sponsor after sponsor backing out. So at the end of the day I knew we’re gonna be OK, we just had to get creative.”…