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Activist, actor, and Stonewall Inn Gives Back board member Angelica Christina, Brooklyn Brewery’s partner in ‘Brooklyn Brewery Supports’
"We want to be very clear: our support isn’t conditional, and it’s not new," Brooklyn Brewery President Robin Ottaway tells The Advocate.
As major companies pull sponsorships from LGBTQ+ Pride Month events, a brewery in New York City is stepping up to show "our support isn’t conditional."
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Brooklyn Brewery, the official beer and brewery of NYC Pride for three years running, has decided to forgo its paid advertisements for Pride and instead use the money to provide direct financial assistance to transgender, nonbinary, and two-spirit New Yorkers. The Brooklyn Brewery Supports fund will distribute $25,000 in direct support to 25 individuals — $1,000 each, no strings attached — to help cover basic needs.
While the brewery will still participate in the Pride March and other celebrations this June, President Robin Ottaway says that "this year, it felt more urgent than ever to shift from symbolic participation to something that offers real, practical help."
"Pride has always been a time to show support, but when trans communities are facing increasingly hostile legislation and deep systemic barriers, visibility alone isn’t enough," Ottaway tells The Advocate. "We realized we could repurpose the money we’d normally spend on advertising into something that directly impacts people’s lives, and that felt like the right move for this moment."
Several large companies have backed out or lessened their support for Pride events this year as part of their decisions to ax their diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Heritage of Pride, the organization that produces NYC Pride, previously had five "Platinum" donors — those who had donated $175,000. This year, it has just one.
Even before Donald Trump's executive orders terminating all DEI positions in the federal government, dozens of major companies had already abandoned their practices. Many made their decisions after conservatives online specifically targeted them for their policies and threatened boycotts, with failed filmmaker turned failed congressional candidate Robby Starbuck taking credit for spearheading the movement.
For Ottaway, it's been "very disheartening to see how many companies are pulling back their support this year," as it "sends a message" that it's acceptable to use marginalized communities for profit until it becomes inconvenient.
"For us, it underscored how important it is to stay in it, especially when others don’t," Ottaway continues. "We want to be very clear: our support isn’t conditional, and it’s not new. We've been showing up — especially through our long-standing partnership with The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative — and that commitment doesn’t fade when the political climate gets tougher. If anything, that’s when it matters most. It's more important than ever that we continue to step up louder."
Brooklyn Brewery Supports recipients will be selected on a rolling basis through December 2025 with the help of Stonewall Inn Gives Back board member Angelica Christina. Anyone who is over the age of 21, lives in NYC, and identifies as trans, nonbinary, or two-spirit may apply or be nominated by a friend.
"At its core, we hope the money offers some breathing room — a chance to ease immediate stress around basic needs like housing, food, or healthcare," Ottaway says. "But we also hope it sends a message: that trans and nonbinary New Yorkers are seen, valued, and supported — not just with words, but with action."
