Diversity as a strategic value: why Pride Week is part of Cheesecake Labs’ culture

On June 28th, 1969, the Stonewall Riots took place in NY. The local LGBTQIA+ community started putting an end to police oppression and violence. They fought back, possibly creating the greatest milestone in the community’s rights history. This was just the beginning of a series of demonstrations and movements that took over the world, which reached more visibility to diversity.

Until 1990, homosexuality carried the suffix “ism” and was treated as a disease. On May 17th of the same year, the World Health Organization (WHO) removed it from the list of diseases and adopted the suffix “ity”, which refers to behavior. This achievement became a reason to celebrate, which resulted on May 17th becoming the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

Unfortunately, current studies show that much remains to be achieved, including basic rights that are still denied to the LGBTQIA+ community in many countries.

• 69 countries still consider it a crime to be homosexual – in 13 of them, people can be sentenced to death
• Until 2019, only nine countries in the world offered constitutional protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation. In practice, however, this does not mean that LGBTQIA+ people are effectively protected.
• One Brazilian LGBTQIA+ person dies by LGBTphobia every 26 hours, either by murder or suicide.
• Brazil is the country where most transgender are killed in the world.
• Only 4% of the trans population in Brazil are in formal jobs with the possibility of promotion and career progression.

Campaigns in favor of diversity

Diversity parades and other pride movements are gaining more and more popularity around the world. But it is still problematic that countries like Brazil, which has one of the biggest LGBTQIA+ pride parades in the world that takes place in São Paulo, is still the country where most transgender people are killed in the world.

It is because of this controversial reality that these movements need to be taken to the streets even more, to reach more people all over the world. The more diversity is naturalized, the more it will be accepted by society.

To take a stand in defense of the LGBTQIA+ community, some institutions and companies annually organize a Pride Week. It is a period dedicated to learning and reinforcing support for this important cause.

Pride Week at Cheesecake Labs

To nurture this moment of reflection, Cheesecake Labs has promoted its own Pride Week over the past few years. The event brings different people to speak and share their knowledge. The goal is to grow more each year and promote important discussions that support the LGBTQIA+ movement – in and outside the company.

The goal is to improve what we learned in past editions. This can be observed by how we appreciate diversity throughout the whole year and it reinforces the company’s values ​​- one of them being “Respect people and embrace differences”.

Currently in its third edition – the second one taking place online, this year’s event began with talks on topics such as giving up common ideas and beliefs about the LGBTQIA+ community through life stories shared between Cakers.

Throughout the week, Cheesecake also featured an open talk about the use of neutral language, its history and the do’s and don’ts. Also, the Cakers had a moment to watch a short film together, which has opened space for reflections and discussions. We brought different contents for this week, aiming to promote learning at different levels and impact everyone at the company.

What diversity brings to Cheesecake Labs

Cheesecake is able to captivate talents from different realities, who have different stories and cultural backgrounds, since it is focused on promoting a safe and welcoming environment for all people.

This cultural wealth brings movement and motivation to all employees, and it is certainly one of the reasons why we grow. Diversity moves us!

“When we feel free and safe to be who we really are in a workplace, we can focus our energy on delivering a WOOOW service. By respecting people and embracing differences, we also bond more with co-workers while nurturing an environment of growth and collaboration.”

Marcelo Gracietti, Cheesecake Labs’ CEO