Responding to a “rainbow-washing” furore just days before the event, Johannesburg Pride has denied claims that the American multinational company Amazon is sponsoring this year’s edition.
Earlier this week, an open letter from several organisations — including some pro-Palestine groups — called for a boycott of Johannesburg Pride, alleging that Amazon supports Israel amid ongoing human rights violations in Palestine.
The organisations, under the banner of “NoGoBurg Pride”, described Amazon as “Joburg Pride’s biggest sponsor” and accused the event of aligning with corporations that “profit from oppression” and have “no true commitment to equality.”
The letter also criticised Amazon Web Services (AWS) for establishing its African headquarters on “significant San and Khoi terrain” in Cape Town, a project currently being challenged in court.
On Tuesday, Johannesburg Pride shared a video response featuring Kaye Ally, organiser of Johannesburg Pride and Executive Director of Pride of Africa. In the video, Ally expressed concern about claims that some organisations supporting the open letter are associated with individuals or groups that have taken an anti-LGBTQ+ stance.
However, she did not directly address the letter’s claims regarding Pride’s sponsors, particularly those involving Amazon.
Amazon Not a 2025 Sponsor
On Wednesday, Ally told MambaOnline that while Amazon was indeed a sponsor in 2024, it is not sponsoring this year’s Pride. This is despite a July social media post shared by Glamazon (Amazon’s LGBTQ+ employee network), appearing to announce such a partnership.
“We’d like to clarify an error in our previous statement. Amazon is not a Pride sponsor this year,” Ally said. She added that the earlier misunderstanding “was based on incomplete social media screenshots, and we regret the oversight.”
Ally also explained that while Pride had entered into discussions with Amazon about the sponsorship, the deal had fallen through.
She continued: “This speaks to a larger issue: we were not invited to any roundtable or community discussion before the open letter was published. Misinformation like this is deepening divides in a community that is already fragmented, often for personal or political gain.”
Website and Sponsor List Confusion
When MambaOnline pointed out that the Johannesburg Pride website still listed Amazon and Amazon Web Services as sponsors as of Tuesday, Ally explained that the sponsors page erroneously reflected last year’s information and had not been updated for 2025. (The link on the website to the sponsors page has since been disabled.)
A new social media post from Johannesburg Pride on Wednesday listed the 2025 sponsors, and Amazon’s logos were notably absent.
Ally again criticised the organisations behind the open letter, accusing them of harbouring “anti-LGBTQ sentiments” and said, “for them to release such inaccurate information to the public is unacceptable.”
She would not be drawn on whether Amazon should have a been sponsor at any point, in light of the allegations against it.
Bev Ditsie’s Pride Nostalgia Picnic
While the controversy rages, longstanding LGBTQ+ activist Bev Ditsie, one of the organisers of the first Johannesburg Pride in 1990, is hosting a “Pride Nostalgia Picnic” at Zoo Lake in Rosebank on the same day as Johannesburg Pride. Ditsie’s House of Ditsie is among the organisations that endorsed the open letter to Johannesburg Pride.
Reacting to the gathering, Ally questioned if Ditsie had secured the required permissions and facilities to host “a public event” at Zoo Lake.
Speaking to MambaOnline, Distie insisted that they should not be singled out among the supporters of the letter. “I am not the organiser in any way whatsoever, and I’m being scapegoated,” they said. “The other people in the collective, all their logos are there.”
Responding to Ally’s questions about the picnic, Ditsie commented: “It’s a public park. We did not organise an event. We’re just gathering with people who want to have a picnic at the park on the day as an alternative. And if you don’t want to come and support a genocide, then that’s all it is. If you want to have an alternative place to celebrate Pride, then come to a picnic. It’s as simple as that.”
MambaOnline is also attempting to reach out to a representative of the groups behind the open letter for comment, which will be added here if received.
