Sure, we have to be careful about corporations going after the rainbow dollar. We have to ask questions like: How friendly are these corporations to our communities when they aren’t looking to make a profit? How far are we willing to allow “equality” to be literally capitalized upon? If you wrap junk food in a rainbow wrapper or use artificial dye to make it rainbow colored, does it actually taste gayer? Regardless of how you feel about corporations trying to seduce us with their glossy LGBT ads, it says something about where we are that LGBT people are being featured in ads at all. Here they are, in no particular order, the best LGBT ads of the year featuring queer and/or trans women.
1. Chobani’s “Love This Life” Ad
This ad was part of Chobani’s “Love This Life” campaign and shocked conservative yogurt fans (Ok, it was One Million Moms.) with its scandalous Greek-yogurt-eating naked ladies gently stroking each other’s feet and stealing the bedsheets in a way that really screamed “gals who are pals.” For the record, that is not how I react when someone steals my blankets.
2. Anouk’s “Bold is Beautiful” Ad
Homosexuality is stigmatized in India, and sex with someone of the same sex is criminalized by Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, so it was a really huge moment when Anouk, an Indian clothing company, chose to release this ad featuring a young queer couple in love, preparing to come out to one of their families. It is a long one, but worth the time and beautifully filmed.
3. Wells Fargo’s “Learning Sign Language” Ad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxDsx8HfXEk
The so-called American Family Association and evangelical religious organizations got real mad about this heartwarming video about two moms learning sign language so they can communicate with the deaf daughter they are adopting. I’m not crying, you’re crying.
4. AT&T “This is Me” Ad
Well, this ad just keeps getting better and better. A gloriously diverse cast of couples representing the LGBT community, and everyone is nice to everyone. I think this is what the world would look like if we put all the hetero people on an island and literally everyone in the world was queer and/or trans.
5. & Other Stories (H&M) “Athleisure Collection” Ad Campaign
& Other Stories, a company owned by H&M, released this video featuring five transgender creatives who were featured in a 2015 ad campaign for an “athleisure capsule collection.” The ads featured two trans models, Valentijn De Hingh and Hari Nef, and had a creative team including three trans professionals, Amos Mac (photographer), Love Bailey (stylist) and Nina Poon (makeup artist).
6. Doritos’ Pride Chips
In the long-standing tradition of marketing junk food for Pride, Doritos created a limited edition rainbow flavored product. Apparently they tasted like cool ranch and freedom; I wouldn’t know.
7. Hallmark’s “Put Your Heart to Paper” Ad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6XGYifGseg
Geez, these women are such cuties and they have such great glasses. “She’s so many things to me. She means being excited for the future and the right now.” OK, cool, not tearing up, it’s fine. Buy some cards, I guess!
8. Target’s “Take Pride” Ad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Ji8OpjSCXE
I’m really concerned about that women walking down the center of the freeway. That seems kind of dangerous, but what do I know? Hope she is safe! Target loaded their shelves with rainbow-colored everything and released this video ad showing gay and lesbian people spliced with bits of gay and lesbian history for Pride this year. Remember when Target got caught giving massive donations to an anti-gay candidate a couple years ago? That was fun!
9. Lucky Charms’ “Lucky to Be Nic and Kelly” Ad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tyn7p4EVVas
There is a very cute dog with lesbian moms in this ad. Just letting you know. These chicks are cuties and apparently their wedding was magically delicious.
10. Gap’s #GotYourBack Ad
As part of GLAAD’s #GotYourBack Campaign, this video can get a little sadface, but it’s ultimately a surprisingly authentic message from the Gap, told by their actual employees. So put on your everyday khakis and get into it.
11. Tylenol’s #HowWeFamily Ad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c33dTK7nUqo
Johnson & Johnson got kinda political with this one. Also, there’s some lesbians at prom in there. Did you see them?
12. Gatorade’s “Forget Me” Ad featuring Abby Wambach
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGQZ5FfvP3E
Get your tissues out. Abby Wambach, my hometown hero and the world’s favorite Women’s World Cup lesbian sweetheart, is going to hit you right in your bleeding liberal feminist heart with this one.
So many tears now so early in the morning! The wells fargo was a favorite of mine, some of these I hadn’t seen before, and they basically all caused wet eyes!
I just watched them again and am all teary again. Damn corporations, fucking with my emotions!
What about the Campbell’s soup as with the two Dads saying, alternately, “Luke! I am your faaaaaather.” I love that one.
Haha, I was just about to say the same thing. So cute:)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rZOMY2sOnE
Aww, I’ve never seen that one before! So cute!
That is such a cute one! We didn’t include it because we were looking for one with queer and/or trans women. Actually, there are a TON of ads featuring gay men without any women. So it was a little challenging to find the lady ads, because most of the “LGBT Ads” in 2015 seem to actually be featuring gay men.
As per usual…
Even though it wasn’t about Queer ladies this was probably my favorite after the Wells Fargo one. Queers, a baby & Star Wars references all in one commercial.
Can the Anouk ad be my favorite movie of the year? So beautiful.
The Wells Fargo one hits me right in the heartstrings every time.
Ugh. It really pulls on the heartstrings. And it’s basically a short film, it’s so gently paced and beautifully shot.
Well, this hit me right in the feels on a Friday morning! So thanks.
The Anouk in particular is a tear jerker! So beautiful.
And I had almost forgotten the Well’s Fargo as, one of my favs of the year.
The Chobani ad is really simple/ sexy/ sweet! (And, I won’t lie, made me feel a little better about my already established Choobank addiction, lol)
I don’t know why she’s eating yogurt in bed, but that’s OK, I guess. I feel like they should have cast Leisha Hailey in that commercial since she had to pretend to like boys in those yogurt commercials she did for yoplait circa 2007.
The Wambach commercial was making me die of feelings yesterday. I made it through watching it again today, though.
That Wells Fargo ad, holy crap. A bank ad should NOT make me feel anything that strongly.
I KNOW. Here, have a tissue.
I have a lot of feelings about all of this. I may or may not be wiping tears off my keyboard… it’s fine…
Passing the tissues.
Abby Wambach! So many tears.
I WILL NEVER FORGET.
Nope, not crying, not crying at all.
Wells Fargo and Hallmark got to me. I have feelings now.
Sorry about that.
That Anouk ad accomplishes in like 2 minutes, what Jenny’s Wedding fails to accomplish in almost 2 hours. And so billowy!
YES. EXACTLY.
And yeah, the clothes and fabrics and colors are beautiful. It works as a clothing ad. I would def be tempted to buy their clothes if I lived in India.
You can tell the two women in the Anouk ad are progressive because of their hip and alternative Clockwork Orange poster.
Very modern ladies.
I was a fool to try and watch these while doing makeup!!
took care of my crying quota for today though hah
Oh yeah, that probably didn’t work too well. Hope you had some good waterproof mascara!
How can you not include the Ikea one where they have a lesbian couple in their new kitchen having a romantic dinner? It’s Ikea and it includes lesbian couple. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxDb28iB51Q
OMG HOW DID I MISS THIS IT IS ADORABLE
oh my god that at&t ad was GLORIOUS
also the abby wambach ad was amazing
oh let’s be real I LIKED THEM ALL DAMN IT
Half the time I’m like “i’ve never ever seen these commercials!!! I THINK” then I realize NOPE I HAVE NOT SEEN THEM BECAUSE I NEVER WATCH TV. THis is what I’m missing.
You’re not missing anything, because even these ads get featured here and you can get a summary of instagram, twitter, interesting news, literature, gift ideas… all without having to go to any other website. I bascially get all my media input from Autostraddle.
I remember that Wells Fargo commercial coming out and then I somehow forgot about it until now. I still can’t believe a commercial for a bank got me teary-eyed. Again!
Proud to bank with Wells Fargo!
And I had never seen the Hallmark one before. Thanks for bringing that to my attention
I don’t know what made me cry more: the Wells Fargo commercial or the fact that my grandparents actively sought me out when I came home to show it to me.
That’s adorable.
Thanks very much for adding the Anouk ad.
To think that I watch TV in India (sparingly), and never knew about this or similar ads. And I was just thinking the other day that if I was exposed only to Indian television, I’d feel that I was the only gay person in India. (which I used to feel earlier before spending so much time on the internet).
Apparently, the Anouk ad is not the only LGBT friendly ad here.
http://www.huffingtonpost.in/2015/06/11/lesbian-ad-india_n_7558378.html
If you go there, the Fastrack (a watch) one is really cool! Better not to look at the comments; I noticed that the comments in many of the online news stories are really sad. ;-(
Or you could just go here and watch only Fastrack. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmk9D53G6F8. The comments are really friendly here. :)
These are not 2015 ads, so you may already have seen these.
PS: I have never seen them on TV; nor heard mention of them.
Or, may be I didn’t know because i live in an Indian cave. Apparently, they were indeed there on TV, just not on the shows I watch.
That’s cool!
Thanks for sharing the Fastrack ad! Really fun! I liked the description from Fastrack on the YouTube vid: “Fastrack has always been a window into the young, progressive mindset of today’s youth. A mindset that isn’t bogged down or defeated by society’s rules.”
Right on, Fastrack!
Are ads in India longer sometimes? I can’t imagine the Anouk ad playing in the U.S. Commercials are typically 15 or 30 seconds here. The Anouk ad is beautiful, but it’s over two minutes!
I think a lot of the longer US ads on this list were for online only audiences (like the Hallmark one). Could be wrong though!