Q&A: In Trump era, firms still back LGBTQ+ rights - only quietly

BERLIN - U.S. President Donald Trump's crackdown on policies that champion diversity at work has prompted companies to back LGBTQ+ rights in private rather than parade their advocacy, says the head of a business campaign group.

Since Trump banned policies that underpin diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in the workplace, many firms have scurried to pull money out of high-profile Pride events and scrapped initiatives that support LGBTQ+ equality.

Critics have castigated companies for what they see as an expedient about-face after years of posting rainbow logos on social media and sending branded floats to Pride marches.

Context sat down with Ken Janssens, the new CEO of Open for Business, a coalition of companies making the economic and business case for LGBTQ+ inclusion, to discuss what he calls a new era of company engagement for LGBTQ+ rights.

What is the biggest challenge when it comes to making the economic case for LGBTQ+ inclusion in 2025?

The biggest challenge is that most companies now prefer to have a slightly lower profile. That means we make a slight pivot to meet companies where they are. But they still want to fund our work. All our coalition partner companies have paid their membership this year. That tells me that there's a strength in numbers, if you move as a block, rather than (U.S. bank) JPMorgan doing this, or (U.S. tech firm) IBM doing that.

Where do companies stand after this year’s anti-DEI backlash?

I think it's less about high-profile recognition and more about lower profile, but just as important, closed-door conversations. We've gone from an era where companies were very public, with for example public statements in support of marriage equality, to a very different scenario.

In the current environment, many policymakers and lawmakers don't respond well to that any more. But what they do respond well to is private conversations.

Look at marriage equality in Thailand: we know that one of the reasons the government made that decision is because they knew it will be good for tourism.

And companies have incredible influence.

Many young LGBTQ+ people are angry at companies pulling support for LGBTQ+ causes. How do you explain this to them?

I understand them. But we need to explain how this all works. And there's no doubt some companies have treated inclusion superficially and jumped on the DEI bandwagon without being serious about it.

But we've also seen consistent leadership from global firms for more than 20 years that are still investing in LGBTQ+ equality, even in difficult markets. That's real commitment.

If you have 25% of your revenue tied to government contracts, you have no choice.

But I don't think companies have suddenly stopped believing that being LGBT-inclusive is the right thing to do. They know in their bones that if they are LGBT-inclusive, they are going to be able to attract and retain talent, and have higher levels of productivity.

In some locations, we see a rise of movements that depict LGBTQ+ rights as a 'Western import' and 'new form of colonialism'. How are companies dealing with that?

DEI may have been seen for years as a U.S. thing, it may have started there, but I think now we've moved beyond that.

I would just point at Asia being such a great example.

It's not just multinationals that embrace LGBT inclusion in places like India and Japan. There are also huge Indian and Japanese companies embracing that. There are many other great examples in Brazil. We are connecting business leaders with diplomatic missions in Nairobi.

When businesses advocate for inclusion, they're not imposing foreign values - they're upholding universal principles of dignity, fairness, and opportunity.

Our work around the world has shown us really clearly that the economic case is the same everywhere.

This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

(Reporting by Enrique Anarte in Berlin; Editing by Lyndsay Griffiths.)