Editor's note: This story is part of Southwest Michigan Second Wave's On the Ground Battle Creek series.
 
BATTLE CREEK, MI — The community is rallying around Battle Creek Pride as the organization loses support from larger sponsors for its 2025 Pride Festival.

The city’s annual celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community will go on as planned on July 19 at Leila Arboretum despite the absence of some major sponsorships.

Among the reasons for the pullback are that “they’ve decided to put their charitable dollars elsewhere,” says Cayley Winters-Norrie, Public Relations Manager for BC Pride. “Some folks have just not responded to us or are telling us that it is not in their mission to support us monetarily.”

Given the current political climate and the erasure of Diversity Equity and Inclusion initiatives in marginalized communities, Winters says what leadership with BC Pride is being told “feels a bit deeper” than what is being said.

CourtesyAdmission to BC Pride is free.“This sends a message from large organizations that they actually don’t care about members of the LGBTQIA+ community in core fundamental ways,” Winters-Norrie says. “It’s like they now have this permission from the current administration and his loud and out and about supporters to take off this mask of support of and not pretend anymore.”

Against this backdrop, local businesses and organizations are coming together to support and uplift the festival, says Deana Spencer, President of BC Pride.

“We have gained some incredible support in some unique ways that we haven't experienced before,” she says. "Penetrator Events is selling Pride merchandise and donating a portion to us. Plumeria Boutique is also donating a portion of their sales to us during the month of June, and they are a new in-kind sponsor and will be decorating the stage this year.” 

In addition, Spencer has received emails of support for the LGBTQIA+ community and the struggles it is facing right now from the NAACP Battle Creek Chapter.

The City of Battle Creek and the Battle Creek Community Foundation (BCCF) are reflecting the Pride colors and rainbow on their social media, and Kellogg Community College has a display in their Student Center on pronouns and their importance, Spencer says.

CourtesyLGBTQ&A helped kick off the Battle Creek Pride festivities with a few Battle Creek notables.Since 2016, the first year that Pride Month was celebrated in July with a festival, attendance has grown steadily. The month of June has been officially designated as Pride Month, but leadership with Battle Creek Pride says they have chosen to hold their celebration in July, so they can participate in Pride events in cities that celebrate in June.

Spencer says holding Pride festivities in July allows members of the Battle Creek community and other surrounding areas to support and attend Pride events in other cities in June and cap it off at home in July with BC Pride’s celebrations.
 
“Luckily, we have had an increase in small sponsorships and donorships,” Winters-Norrie says. “They’ve been very supportive of us. The festival still plans on coming out just as loud and proud as in years past.”
 
The politicization of a festival

What BC Pride is experiencing with its festival has happened at similar Pride celebrations throughout the United States this year.

Battle Creek Pride ParadeMajor LGBTQIA+ Pride festivals across the U.S. are facing an unprecedented retreat of corporate sponsorship in 2025, with organizers reporting significant funding shortfalls, according to a story on the 989 creative group website.

“Companies that once eagerly attached their brands to Pride celebrations are scaling down or withdrawing support, citing budget constraints as well as an increasingly hostile political climate,” according to the story. “In past years, big-name sponsors were “loud and proud” in supporting LGBTQIA+ events, but the landscape has shifted. Surveys indicate that 61% of companies felt pressure from the Trump administration’s anti-DEI stance, causing them to rethink Pride participation, and 39% planned to reduce Pride support after a recent executive order curtailing diversity programs.

This pullback comes amid cultural polarization on LGBTQIA+ issues — from debates over transgender rights to right-wing boycotts — which has made some brands view public Pride support as a potential risk to their bottom line.

Although BC Pride has lost a few financial supporters, Spencer says her organization is hoping to regain them for the 2026 festival.
 
To offset these shortfalls, she says, “We are making harder decisions like being very conscious of our budget, and curbing spending where we can, while also considering where the highest value resides in the things that are costing more.”
 
Battle Creek Pride Festival QueensBC Pride, she says, has “made the difficult decision to increase our vendor space costs to help offset the lower sponsorships. We also made the decision to not bring in a headlining drag performer and instead focus and highlight our local community and give our Drag Camp Graduates an opportunity to perform at the festival for the first time.”
 
Corporate social and brand activism peaked between 2016 and 2022, according to Amin Grinstein, a Northeastern University Marketing Professor, but most recently, it has been in retreat.
 
As an example, he cites a study by Gravity Research, which found a 60% decrease in Pride engagement across major companies between 2023 and 2024, a trend that continues.
 
In Gravity Research's 2025 Pride Pulse Poll, which surveyed communications and public affairs officers from over 200 major corporations, nearly 40% reported that their companies are reducing Pride-related engagement, and none expect engagement levels to increase this year. A majority (61%) cited pressure from the new administration as the cause for change, followed by 39% concerned about a conservative backlash.
 
Scenes from Battle Creek PrideA statement on the USA Prides website in response to this trend says that, “The stated reasons for these sponsor departures vary, but, regardless, it’s making waves."
 
According to the statement, however, Pride is not defined by a corporate logo. It’s defined by people.

“Our communities have always known how to do more with less — because we’ve had to. And still, we show up. Still, we rise. Organizers are preparing for larger crowds than ever before. The energy is building, not fading.”
 
Winters-Norrie says BC Pride is “really grateful to the community and a lot of partners who are stepping up in ways we didn’t expect.”
 
“Our festival has always been about community, and we will continue to focus on our community as we grow larger and larger."

Battle Creek Pride will be held from July 17 to July 19, with the main festival on Saturday, July 19, 2025, at the Leila Arboretum in Battle Creek, Michigan. The Pride Parade will take place on Friday, July 18, 2025, with the route going from the staging area to Gould Street, then east on Michigan Avenue, and concluding at Commerce Pointe.