Saturday 11 June 2022 02:49 PM Royal Mint makes rainbow-coloured 50p coin to celebrate Pride, but gay designer ... trends now
The Royal Mint has produced a new rainbow-coloured 50p coin which it says celebrates Pride, but the person who designed it says they have 'mixed feelings' about corporate 'pinkwashing'.
The celebratory multi-coloured coin has been released this month to 'celebrate unity, equality and 50 years of UK pride', the organisation said.
The piece features a portrait of the Queen's head on one side of the coin, with the flip side showing five rainbows, the words 'Protest', 'Unity', 'Visibility', 'Equality' and 'Pride' and the colours black, brown, light blue, pink and white to represent Trans, Black and People of Colour.
It's release coincides with Pride month, which is meant to give a voice marginalised Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) people.
However, it's designer Dominique Holmes says they had concerns about the coin being used as an example of corporate 'pinkwashing' - where organisations promote LGBTQ rights to distract from negative aspects of their business.
Dominique Holmes (pictured here holding the new coin) said she had 'mixed feelings' about committing to the project over concerns about corporate 'pinkwashing'
The coin has the words 'Protest', 'Unity', 'Visibility', 'Equality' and 'Pride' written on the back, along with five rainbows
Dominique said: 'I had slightly mixed feelings about the idea of a coin celebrating 50 years of Pride.
'Whilst I loved that The Royal Mint recognised this significant anniversary in LGBTQ culture, and that the coin itself could be a powerful way to spread the word, like many queer people I have become jaded by the amount of corporate "pinkwashing" that has derailed the important social and political messages behind Pride.
'But once I knew that The Royal Mint was working with the queer community to ensure authenticity and allyship, not to mention inviting queer artists to create the designs, I felt incredibly proud and excited that there would be a Pride coin out there.'
The coin is coin is uncirculated, meaning it is not intended to be used in shops and day to day life, although it still can be as it is classed as legal tender.
Anyone who wants one will have to buy it from the Royal Mint or other vendors, with the cheapest
