The ANZ Bank, for this year’s Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras sponsorship, is spreading a little #LoveSpeech in a campaign to challenge hurtful homophobic language.
In Australia, 74% of the LGBTIQ+ community believes hurtful and homophobic language directed at them is a major issue but only 34% feel condfident in calling it out (YouGov Galaxy Research, Jan 2020).
The ANZ, a principal partner of Mardi Gras, has launched #LoveSpeech by releasing an emotive film calling attention to the negative effects hurtful language has on the LGBTIQ+ community.
The film, directed by the Glue Society, portrays a collection of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer individuals sharing their experiences.
Surrounding the film, ANZ is revealing a prominent billboard overlooking the Mardi Gras parade-route which says that “Boys Should Never Wear Dresses”, only to see LGBTIQ+ Graffiti artist, David Lee Pereira, disarm this hurtful slur by adding, "Without A Killer Pair of Heels”.
The billboard is supported by a series of colourful posters and gifs that take frequently heard hurtful comments and flip them into #LoveSpeech.
The Hurt Blocker, a Google Chrome Extention, has also been created to transform hurtful slurs into fun-loving emoji’s.
And the ANZ has built a Guide to #LoveSpeech to help people understand how words (even when unintentional) can hurt.
"We are incredibly proud of the work we have done over the years to demonstrate support for our LGBTIQ+ staff, customers and community," says Sweta Mehra, chief marketing officer for ANZ.
"This year’s campaign is no different. With unkind, cruel and damaging comments directed at the community every single day, we think it’s time for more #LoveSpeech.
TBWA\Melbourne: “As a long time sponsor of Mardi Gras, ANZ has a remarkable history of support for LGBTIQ+ inclusion. In a world where intentional hatred and casual homophobia can be shouted from the rooftops without any real consequence, #LoveSpeech draws a line in the sand for a more civilised, more respectful and less combative conversation."
The campaign is further supported by a PR strategy from Thrive which sees influencers writer Benjamin Law, Moana Hope (AFLW) and Georgie Stone (actress and trans advocate) lend their voices to the initiative.
Credits:
ANZ Bank Australia
TBWA\Melbourne
Thrive PR
Revolver/Will O’Rourke and The Glue Society
PHD Media
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