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LLYC revives iconic protest banners in new campaign 'Signs of Pride,' going back to the roots of the LGBTQ+ Rights Movement

By: LLYC via GlobeNewswire

July 02, 2025 at 11:00 AM EDT

The campaign bridges past and present by recreating 10 original protest banners from the first Pride marches, returning them to the streets in 2025.
A powerful call to defend hard-won rights under threat: over 90 legal rollbacks in the past three years, 62 countries still criminalize homosexuality, and marriage equality is recognized in only 38.
The project, which honors those who ignited the fight for LGBTQ+ rights, was made possible through a collaboration with the production company Dim Sum and the support of organizations including Redi, Fundación 26 de Diciembre, Yaaj, Colectivo Sol, Colombia Diversa, Movilh, and Grand Rapids Pride, all of whom contributed to the research process.

MADRID, July 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Over the past three years, more than 90 legislative changes across different countries have rolled back essential rights for the LGBTQ+ community, reversing decades of hard-fought progress. Equally alarming: homosexuality is still criminalized in 62 countries, and marriage equality is officially recognized in just 38. In the face of this global backlash, listening to those who’ve fought this battle before has never been more urgent.

In response, LLYC, the global Marketing and Corporate Affairs firm, is launching Signs of Pride, a campaign that rekindles the original protest banners of the first Pride marches, returning them to the streets in 2025. Created in partnership with Dim Sum and with the backing of LGBTQ+ organizations from five countries, the campaign is a tribute to the roots of queer activism — at a time when past victories are once again under threat.

Signs of Pride shines a spotlight on senior LGBTQ+ activists — key figures from the earliest Pride protests — who re-emerge today as living symbols of memory, courage, and resistance. Their stories don't just honor history, they inspire action in the present and strengthen the collective will to protect the future.

The initiative brings historic protest banners back into the spotlight in Pride marches this 2025, in cities such as Bogotá, Mexico City, Madrid, and Santiago de Chile. This was made possible through close collaboration with frontline LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations, including Redi, Fundación 26 de Diciembre, Yaaj, Colectivo Sol, Colombia Diversa, Movilh, and Grand Rapids Pride, who supported LLYC throughout the research and development process.

At the heart of the campaign is a powerful short film featuring Ramón Linaza, a senior Spanish activist who revisits the early days of Pride. Through his story, we journey across decades of progress and confront the urgent challenges the community faces today. His voice is joined by nearly a dozen conversations with other senior activists from around the world— a multigenerational chorus that weaves together past and present, and reminds us why these signs of Pride still matter.

The project's web experience allows viewers to dive deeper into each story: Who were the original banner holders? What was the world like when they first marched? And how do they see themselves reflected in today's struggles? Through a visual and emotional journey, the campaign presents then-and-now portraits taken in the same locations as the original photos with the same banners, either carefully restored or faithfully recreated by hand, to show that their messages still hold true.

"Signs of Pride is our way of standing up for LGBTQ+ rights at a time when backlash is growing in many parts of the world,” says David González Natal, Partner at LLYC and project lead. “This campaign revives the legacy of those who helped spark the movement and whose voices haven't always been heard. What they wrote decades ago still matters today."

This action is part of LLYC's ongoing commitment to diversity and inclusion. The firm was recognized by HRC Equidad Mexico as one of the Best Places to Work for LGBTQ+ Talent in 2024, and has developed several award-winning campaigns such as Free the Voices, Rainbot, Compañías y diversidad LGBTIQ+, and Transparentes, known for their innovation and social impact.

In addition, through the Fundación José Antonio Llorente, LLYC actively partners with nonprofit organizations to promote job opportunities for LGBTQ+ youth living in vulnerable conditions.

About LLYC

LLYC (BME:LLYC), is a global Marketing and Corporate Affairs consulting firm that partners with its clients in creativity, influence, and innovation to enhance and protect the value of their businesses, turning every day into an opportunity to grow their brands.

Founded in 1995, LLYC is present in the United States (Miami, New York, Washington, DC, Grand Rapids, Detroit, St. Louis and Phoenix), Argentina, Brazil (São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro), Brussels, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Portugal and Spain (Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia).

In 2024, LLYC's operating revenues exceeded 93.1 million euros. LLYC is ranked as one of the 40 largest communications companies worldwide, according to PRWeek. LLYC was named the Top Communications Consultant in Europe at the 2025 PRWeek Global Awards and Communications Consultant of the Year in Latin America in 2023 by PRovoke.

Press contact:

Joe DiBenedetto
joseph.dibenedetto@llyc.global