It’s so disappointing that L’Oreal don’t seem to realise that pride and Midsumma aren’t events like the tennis and Moomba. They’re not a faceless festival; they’re representative of real people, their identities, and often their personal struggles to live in a way that they can feel proud of. To use the people already on their books, who don’t have any history of allyship with the community they’re celebrating is not just lazy, but it’s really dismissive of the actual people who time Midsumma and pride is representing.
I’m a big football fan, and I wouldn’t want anyone hosting functions or representing my football club who didn’t actually support the team. That would seem incredibly disingenuous. And that’s such a minor interest compared to someone’s sexuality and identity, I simply cannot begin to imagine how deflating it would be to see a brand to pretend to be an active supporter while engaging the services of someone whose silence on topics make it pretty clear she’s not an ally in any way, shape or form.