Beyond Borders: What Can We Learn from the Sunshine State?

This is the third installment of Beyond Borders, a four-part series exploring the emerging challenges and opportunities of business travel for queer and trans employees amid rising polarization. Originally posted to LinkedIn.

When tragedy struck Orlando’s queer community on June 12, 2016, the response was immediate and unified. The Pulse nightclub shooting, then the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, sent shockwaves around the world. In the days and weeks that followed, the question everyone asked was: How can we help?

The international response prioritized support for survivors, the families of victims, and the broader queer and trans community in Orlando. Millions of dollars poured into relief efforts. Queer-owned businesses in the area saw an outpouring of support. Major corporations made financial commitments and, in some cases, deepened their engagement with queer advocacy. The tragedy brought people together in grief, but also in action.

Contrast that with the reaction to Florida’s so-called ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law, formally known as the Parental Rights in Education Act. The bill, signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis in 2022, restricted discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity in classrooms. It sparked widespread condemnation, but also a very different type of response than the shooting at Pulse. Instead of rallying around queer and trans Floridians, the discourse became measurably individualistic. The dominant question was not How can we help? but Should I go to Florida or not?

The Unifying Power of Tragedy

The Pulse shooting galvanized the community and its allies in ways few events have before or since. According to Funders for LGBTQ Issues, foundation funding for queer and trans organizations reached a record high of $202.3 million in 2016, marking a 25% increase from the previous year. Advocacy organizations like Equality Florida mobilized. The City of Orlando introduced new safety and inclusion measures. Memorials became sites of community healing and ongoing activism. Even corporations, often criticized for surface-level engagement, took meaningful steps. Disney and NBC Universal made major donations to survivor relief funds. Out & Equal chose to host its global summit in Orlando that same year in solidarity with survivors of the shooting.

It was a moment when action, not optics, took center stage. The response reflected a deep understanding that those most affected should be at the heart of any recovery effort. The world’s eyes were on Orlando, and the priority was helping those who lived there.

The Individualistic Nature of Outrage

The reaction to Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law in 2022 was different. The outrage was just as loud, if not louder, than the grief caused by the shooting at Pulse. But in this case, the focus shifted from the people affected to those watching from afar. National and international media fixated on boycotts and travel bans. Social media was flooded with posts from people proclaiming they would never set foot in Florida again. Organizations outside of Florida debated whether to hold conferences in the Sunshine State. Some of them faced criticism for not pulling out of the region in response to the law. The dominant narrative was that “good” queers would avoid Florida.

But what did any of that do for the queer and trans people actually living in Florida?

As discussed in my last article, boycotts and travel bans have their place. However, they work best when they are part of a coordinated strategy that includes legal challenges, grassroots advocacy, and economic alternatives that don’t disproportionately harm the communities they aim to support. In this case, the disengagement largely served to make those outside of Florida feel like they were ‘doing something’ without having any tangible impact on the law itself and, despite the controversy, Florida’s tourism economy remained robust.

As behavioral economics research suggests, people often make decisions based on values and identity rather than economic utility. Many saw avoiding Florida as a reflection of their moral character. But while it may have provided psychological relief, it did little to shift the material conditions for those still living under the law’s effects. Worse, it often undermined them. Travel advisories and conference relocations from queer organizations cut off revenue streams for queer-owned businesses, and performative outrage distracted from more substantive efforts to support local activism.

What Meaningful Engagement Can Look Like

If disengagement doesn’t work, what does? The Pulse tragedy and reactions to similar events provide a roadmap for how Canadian companies can engage with the current situation south (and northwest) of our border. The most effective responses from businesses prioritized:

Direct Investment: After Pulse, organizations and individuals donated to funds that supported survivors and their families. Today, the same approach could mean supporting community-led groups across the U.S., particularly those that are losing access to federal funds because of Trump’s executive order on gender.

Corporate Accountability: Disney helped transform an abandoned county building into a family assistance center to support victims of the Pulse shooting and their families. Today, as anti-queer and anti-trans laws continue to spread across the U.S., businesses must once again step up in ways that go beyond symbolic statements.

Community-Centered Action: The world looked to queer Floridians to guide the response after the 2016 shooting. The same should be true now. Groups like Equality Florida and trans-led organizations are actively fighting back. Supporting them is a far more efficient route to progress than skipping a trip to Disney World.

Final Takeaway

The importance of a community-centred approach is something we’ve seen in Canada. Since Alberta’s government introduced its latest round of anti-trans policies, two national organizations, The Enchanté Network and Fierté Canada Pride, have held their annual conferences in Calgary in solidarity with community-led organizations and queer-owned businesses in the region.

As discussed in my first article, personal safety should be everyone’s top priority when choosing where to travel. In times of crisis, our actions must be shaped by the needs and voices of those most directly affected. While performative actions may provide temporary comfort to those watching from afar, real change happens when we focus our efforts on tangible solutions that empower the communities facing these challenges every day.

Next in the series: What will Pride Season look like in 2025? With anti-queer sentiment rising, Canadian Pride festivals matter more than ever. Next, I’ll explore how companies can align business travel with meaningful Pride engagement, ensuring their presence goes beyond optics to real impact.