What is pinkwashing?
He pinkwashing It can be summarized in those practices that, although they promote companies and destinations as friendly for the LGBTIQ+ community, show little commitment to the development and support of relevant policies for the members of this group, as defined by researchers José Barquet Muñóz and José Carlos Vázquez Parra , academics from the Tecnológico de Monterrey.
Mariano Osores, president of the National Association of LGBT Commerce and Tourism of Mexico, recounts a case of this type where the Ministry of Tourism of Mexico City removed two transgender people from the capital’s stand at this year’s Tianguis Turístico, the biggest event of the sector in the country of which it was also host, when one of the secretariat’s messages was, ironically, that of inclusion.
“Why is it called pinkwashing? Because people only use the month of June to carry out their promotional campaigns, change their color logos, post on Facebook, but then June passes and they do nothing for the rest of the year”, he explains in an interview. “Not only are you going to sell in June, you want to sell every day of the year.”
the ailment of pinkwashing It stands out in a country like Mexico, which is not the safest for the community. The country ranks seventh in murders of transgender people, and 42nd in terms of openness to the community, according to The 203 Worst (& Safest) Countries for LGBTQ+ Travel ranking, below other countries such as Colombia, Brazil and the United States. .
The importance of training
One of the ways in which you can combat the pinkwashing it is through training for workers, in which they can learn how to translate the mission of inclusion into practice on a day-to-day basis.
“You have to have perseverance and continuity over time for there to be a return, right? A return on investment for companies. So that’s where we work with them. That is why this workshop was created, which trains, sensitizes, and develops a tourist product”, says Osores.
Carlos Pérez Puelles, Director of Sales at JW Marriott Mexico City, says that the training has allowed the hotel staff to live respectfully with their guests and some prejudices that exist in a reservation, such as offering a room with two beds when two men make a reservation, something that does not happen with a couple of men and women.
“The first step is to have a clear position. People buy what they see, and if they never see two people of the same sex in a promotion, they hardly think it’s an LGBT place. friendly”, he said in a forum with the media.
The training of firms such as the National Association of LGBT Commerce and Tourism of Mexico and Queer Destinations, for example, seek to sensitize businessmen and workers which, in the tourism sector, also translates into learning and meeting the needs of each sub-segment.
“Marketing I can tell you that the universe is LGBTQ+, but each letter represents a segment and a market niche, and there is a different way to do the marketing and communication for each of the letters”, says Osores. “We are people who travel like any other type of person, but we mainly seek respect”, he concludes.