Anheuser-Busch is in the spotlight for taking steps towards inclusivity. Since partnering with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, the giant company has suffered a lot of backlash.

But we already know all this; it has been in the news for some time now, and I think we’re all familiar with the details. I wonder how calculated of a move it was. A company that size spends billions on marketing. They likely knew what they were doing. Indeed they were well aware of their brand’s popularity with the more rightwing conservative crowd. They must surely understand that demographic is also largely uncomfortable with the LGBTQ+ community, to put it kindly.

So why did they do it? I wonder if it could be a sign of the times. It’s generally believed that every generation has slightly more progressive views of the world; millennials and Generation Z are much more sympathetic to LGBTQ+ groups and individuals. I think the brewing company saw an opportunity to connect with that. The brewing company is, after all, a business and is in it for the money. Perhaps they anticipate a societal shift and want to open up to a new demographic.

I wouldn’t say I like bud light. It’s a sad excuse for beer and can best be likened to the experience of having sex in a canoe cause it’s fucking close to water. Though I admire their bravery in pissing off so many people, taking billions of dollars of loss, and offering flat apologies to their clientele. I hope I’m right; it is a sign of future things. I hope other companies follow suit and learn from this and seek endorsements from outside of the safety of hetero-white Americans.

Civilization was able to rise because societies grew stronger from diversity. Our differences become strengths when we are free to be who we are and celebrate our differences, even if we sometimes don’t understand them. But we don’t need to understand them; we must accept them.