In the wake of a landmark decision that shook the LGBTQ community, it's more important than ever to support LGBTQ-friendly businesses—and there are plenty of them out there. From a comprehensive directory for customers to more networking-based directories geared toward business owners, these six sites offer a variety of ways to find queer-friendly small businesses near you.
LGBTQ businesses are popping up all over the country, thanks to a surge of entrepreneurship, legal changes and a growing awareness of the value of inclusivity in the workplace. As a result, it's now more common than ever to find LGBTQ-friendly small businesses, with many companies offering non-discrimination policies, openly gay-and-lesbian-inclusive advertising and LGBTQ-focused hiring initiatives. The Human Rights Campaign Foundation also rates companies based on their LGBTQ workplace inclusion, with CEI-rated businesses being "committed to supporting the full range of lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) employees, including by ensuring that all job descriptions and application materials are inclusive and that LGBT+ people are visible throughout the company."
One great resource for finding LGBTQ businesses is the Everywhere Is Queer worldwide map, a public LGBTbusinesses near me resource created for the LGBTQIA2S+ and ally community to discover queer-owned restaurants, bakeries, gyms, cat cafes, car mechanics, therapists, hair stylists and more. The map is constantly growing as users share their LGBTQ-friendly local businesses with the world.
Another option for finding LGBTQ-friendly small businesses is GLPages, which features a huge directory of everything from hair salons to accountants. In addition to allowing businesses to share their LGBTQ-friendly status, the site allows consumers to leave reviews and photos of places they've visited or services that have been rendered, helping other queer folk find safe spaces and LGBTQ-friendly providers.
Many queer-friendly small businesses are dedicated to social activism, promoting equality and raising money for LGBTQ causes. For example, Autostraddle cartoonist Archie Bongiovanni donates proceeds from their t-shirts to the LGBTQ community through a fund they created. Their shirts feature designs that celebrate queer icons like Audre Lorde, Angela Davis and Gloria Anzaldua, as well as transgender and Black pride themes.
Lastly, gender non-conforming clothing brand Rebirth Garments is committed to creating clothes that center non-binary, queer and disabled people. Their tees feature images of trans, non-binary and disabled people in action and include slogans like "Gender Roles Are Dead," "Sexual Oppression Is Real" and "Queer As Fuck."
While the Supreme Court decision was a blow to LGBTQ protections, it's encouraging that more companies are stepping up their efforts to be more inclusive for LGBTQ employees. The more people support LGBTQ-friendly businesses, the more likely it will be that these organizations and entrepreneurs will continue to grow and thrive—and make our world a better place.
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