(And Yes, I’m Still Figuring Out My Place in It All)
Every June, our streets turn into a corporate pride parade. Rainbows flood our feeds. Major brands suddenly "support" the queer community with pastel logos and vague slogans like "Love is Love." But we know what this is.
It’s not liberation — it’s marketing.
It’s not solidarity — it’s sales.
And if I’m honest, I think about that a lot.
Because I, too, am building something — a brand, a business — centered on queer people, gender minorities, and women. I design bold, empowering clothes that speak our truths. I pour my politics, my pride, and my pain into every piece.
But at the end of the day, I’m also making money.
From a community that I belong to. From people like me.
And that sits... complicated.
The Question That Won’t Leave Me:
Am I creating empowerment — or just selling it?
Rainbow capitalism thrives on the aesthetic of queerness, but not the substance. It thrives when queer people are trendy,not when we’re angry. It wants Pride without protest. Visibility without vulnerability.
That’s not what I’m here for.
That’s not what any of us deserve.
What I’m Trying to Build Instead
I want to create more than clothes.
I want to build space — for rage, for resistance, for softness, for visibility that doesn’t come with a price tag. I want the people who wear my designs to feel seen and louder, not "targeted demographics."
I know that making a living from this work doesn’t cancel out my values — but it does demand accountability. That means:
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Being transparent about why I do what I do.
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Putting my politics in my products, not just in my captions.
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Giving back to queer and trans grassroots movements.
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Staying uncomfortable when things get too easy or too cute.
Liberation Is Messy — So Is Building a Business
I don’t have all the answers.
But I do know this: queer liberation can’t be bought, and it definitely won’t come from brands who show up once a year with rainbow logos and stay silent the other eleven months.
As a queer entrepreneur, I walk a line.
But I’m trying — every day — to make that line lean toward liberation. Not exploitation.
Toward community. Not just commerce.
If you’ve ever felt this tension too, you’re not alone.
Let’s keep questioning, challenging, resisting — and building something better. Together.
With Love,
Emilia, Founder of Empowr.
