Lexington Pride Festival is this weekend. Which companies aren’t participating?
Lexington is gearing up for the annual Pride Festival this weekend, but some notable partners won’t be returning.
Amid federal and state pressures to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion efforts across the nation, multiple organizations have pulled out of Lexington Pride.
The Lexington Public Library and University of Kentucky announced earlier this year they will not have booths at the festival.
More organizations have opted out quietly.
Still, the Pride Festival says it is standing strong.
“In this political and cultural moment we’re in, it’s important for the LGBTQIA+ communities to be really visible and to be out there,” Board President of the Lexington Pride Center Jason Schubert said.
“We’re really thankful for all the sponsors and vendors that we have this year. We’ll continue doing what we’re doing,” he said. “We’ll adapt as we need to. We’re going to continue to be an organization and continue to be here.”
Pride celebrations across the country have seen a drop in sponsors.
Large cities like San Francisco and New York have come up hundreds of thousand dollars short this year, according to CBS News. Cincinnati Pride saw a dip in big business support this year, coming up with 14 fewer corporate sponsors than last year, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.
Louisville’s Kentuckiana Pride raised $75,000 less this year, according to WAVE News, as corporations dropped from the celebration. Kentuckiana Pride President Rodney Coffman told WAVE he thinks companies don’t want to risk losing funding amid the national anti-DEI push.
No sponsors have told Schubert they can’t support the festival because of anti-DEI legislation.
Drawing around 18,000 visitors annually, the Lexington Pride Festival, which celebrates the LGBTQ+ community and raises money for the Lexington Pride Center, is one of the city’s biggest celebrations.
Here are some notable sponsors or vendors from last year’s festival that won’t be returning for Lexington Pride 2025:
University of Kentucky and UK HealthCare
University of Kentucky spokesperson Jay Blanton told the Herald-Leader university resources cannot be expended on events or activities the federal government might define as identity-based events.
Pulling out of Pride is the university’s latest attempt to end DEI efforts after state legislation and federal requirement have called for the end of equity programs. Kentucky state lawmakers passed House Bill 4 in March, which requires public colleges and universities in the commonwealth to dismantle DEI offices, programs and incentives.
That law follows similar regulations pushed at the federal level.
In previous years, UK HealthCare has hosted about five booths at the Lexington Pride Festival. Last year, UK HealthCare was a fourth-tier sponsor of Pride, which comes with a price tag of at least $1,500.
Sponsors get benefits like prime booth location and advertising perks. Vendors are just paying for a booth at the festival.
Despite the university’s directive, you still might see the UK logo at the festival.
UK HealthCare’s Infectious Disease Unit and UK Target 4, a partnership between UK and the Kentucky Department for Public Health which aims to expand HIV testing throughout Kentucky, are both registered vendors for Lexington Pride.
Blanton said both programs are “part of state and federal contracts to perform specific services. University funds are not being expended, which is in line with the directive of the institution to not expend university resources at an event that we believe the federal government would deem as being exclusionary in terms of being identity based.”
Despite dismantling the Office for Institutional Diversity, canceling graduation programs for minority graduates and pulling out of Pride, UK is one of 50 universities under investigation for allegedly failing to fully scrap DEI efforts.
Bluegrass Community and Technical College
Lexington’s local community college also cited state law as the reason for not participating in the pride festival.
“Following the passage of House Bill 4, we are evaluating our community partnerships and sponsorships to ensure we are being compliant with state law,” Bluegrass Community and Technical College spokesperson Shelbie Hugle said.
BCTC is one of 16 institutions in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System. It had an enrollment of 11,625 for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Lexington Public Library
In early April, Lexington Public Library announced it would roll back programming deemed to be “under-performing.”
The library system cut educational programming with low attendance and a prom marketed for queer teens.
“Lexington Public Library’s commitment to inclusivity extends far beyond any one event or celebration. While we are not participating in this year’s Pride Festival, LGBTQ+ stories, programs and resources remain an important part of what we offer throughout the year, just as we strive to reflect and welcome all members of our community, every day,” spokesman Dan Koett said.
Along with those efforts, the library announced it would no longer “table,” or host a booth, at any community events.
“The Library made the decision to step back from participating in community tabling events, including Lexington Pride, as part of a program evaluation process. That decision was based on standard criteria applied to all outreach efforts, including resource allocation, community impact, and return on investment,” Koett said.
One week after announcing the library would no longer table at community events, it hosted a booth at a fair put on by CivicLex, a local civic engagement group.
Koett told the Herald-Leader Tuesday that there is not a blanket policy that prohibits tabling, and each event is considered on an individual basis.
“From time to time, we may still choose to engage in events that align closely with our mission and offer meaningful, measurable community impact,” he said.
“Our participation is based on a range of criteria including audience relevance, staff capacity, and long-term impact. As always, the Library remains committed to inclusive service and programming for all members of the Lexington community.”
Alzheimer’s Association
The Greater Kentucky and Southern Indiana chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association hosted a booth at last year’s festival, but won’t return this year. Spokesperson Niki King said the decision to not return has nothing to do “with the current political climate.”
“Our chapter relies on volunteers for more than 95% of our programmatic and community engagement efforts. For this event, we didn’t have enough volunteers available,” she said.
“Also, most of our volunteers are elderly and attending an outside event in June is problematic. The heat is hard on them.”
She said it is the organization’s policy to partner with national and local organizations to advance health equity, access and resources in the fight to end Alzheimer’s.
“The Alzheimer’s Association proudly and unequivocally stands in solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community,” Executive Director for the Greater Kentucky and Southern Indiana chapter Shannon White said.
“We are committed to creating safe and supportive spaces within our organization and beyond where everyone can thrive and be their authentic selves.”
Toyota
Last year, Toyota Kentucky sponsored the Lexington Pride Festival as second-tier sponsor, requiring a payment of at least $5,000.
This year, Toyota won’t be at Pride at all.
“Toyota’s strategy is to focus its resources on education and workforce development,” spokesperson Eric Booth said.
Booth did not elaborate.
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
Citing capacity issues, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network told the Herald-Leader they aren’t able to participate in Lexington Pride this year.
The organization did participate in Northern Kentucky Pride and will be at Pikeville Pride later this year.
“The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network believes everyone should have a fair and just opportunity to prevent, detect, treat and survive cancer,” spokesperson Michelle Zimmerman said.
Anthem Medicaid
Anthem Medicaid sponsored the Pride Festival last year, with a contribution of at least $1,500, according to the Lexington Pride website. They are not listed as a sponsor or vendor for this year’s festival.
“Because we are no longer part of Kentucky’s managed Medicaid program, we are not able to participate in as many community sponsorships in the state at this time,” communications director Jeff Blunt said.
Who else won’t return to Lexington Pride?
Lowe’s spent at least $2,500 on a sponsorship last year. They are not listed as a sponsor or a vendor for this year’s festival.
The Lexington Veteran’s Affairs Pride Support Team is also not listed as a vendor on the 2025 Lexington Pride Festival website. They had a booth last year. The VA did not respond to a request for comment.
Various other small business that were at Pride last year won’t return this year. Schubert said it’s not unusual for the vendor list to change year to year.
Other sponsors that won’t return to this year’s festival include Smiley Pete Publishing; Galls, a work uniform company; PNC Bank and others. The full list of 2025 sponsors can be found on the Lexington Pride Festival website.
Schubert said some sponsors who aren’t returning this year will still support the Lexington Pride Center in other ways, but did not elaborate.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story stated Gilead Sciences, a pharmaceutical company, would not return as a sponsor this year. Gilead will be a sponsor of this year’s festival. The company was not listed as a sponsor at the time of original publication.
This story was originally published June 25, 2025 at 5:00 AM.