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From whitewash (the paint) we got whitewashing (the covering up of misdeeds) and from there greenwashing, redwashing, bluewashing, purplewashing, pinkwashing - and now rainbow-washing, where companies will put Pride flags all over products and posts during the month of June, but behind the scenes will not necessarily be useful - and sometimes they'll be anti-useful.
Mitra Kaboli, host of the new podcast Welcome to Provincetown, helps sort the real allyship from the rainbow-washing; and writer Sarah Schulman, who popularised the term 'pinkwashing' in a 2011 piece in the New York Times, explains the more political meaning of that word.
This episode contains some swears.
EXTRA MATERIALS:
History of the suffix -washing.
Rainbow washing “misleads well-intentioned people into thinking they’re supporting the LGBTQI+ community, when in reality they’re lining the pockets of multi-billion dollar corporations.”
‘We love gay’: Yassification and Appropriation in Mainstream Culture.
Pinkwashing Julia Child.
“M&S threw the first artisanal sandwich at Stonewall”.
“Marketing the Rainbow... is there a pot of gold at the end of it?”
That CIA Pride post… :/
“Since 2000, BP has used the tag line “Beyond Petroleum” as part of its green campaign. The overhaul of BP’s image has been celebrated by some as a rebranding success and decried by others as a perfect example of greenwashing.”
For other Pride-relevant Allusionists, check out this playlist of episodes about ‘queer’, ‘bisexual’, ‘Pride’ and much more.
Also! I was just on the lovely podcast Twice Upon a Time with Janet Ellis, revisiting Judith Kerr’s autobiographical novel When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit.
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July in Australia!
Ticket info at theallusionist.org/events
LIVE SHOWS! July in Australia! Ticket info at theallusionist.org/events
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YOUR RANDOMLY SELECTED WORD FROM THE DICTIONARY:
autotelic, adjective: (of an activity or creative work) having an end or purpose in itself.
CREDITS:
Sarah Schulman is a writer; her books include Conflict is Not Abuse, After Dolores and Maggie Terry.
Mitra Kaboli is an audiomaker and the host of the new podcast Welcome To Provincetown.
This episode was produced by me, Helen Zaltzman. The original Allusionist music is by Martin Austwick. Download his songs at palebirdmusic.com, listen to his podcasts Song By Song and Neutrino Watch, and hear more of his composition on the science podcast for kids Maddie’s Sound Explorers.
Find the show at twitter.com/allusionistshow, facebook.com/allusionistshow, twitter.com/helenzaltzman and instagram.com/allusionistshow.
