The 16th annual Korea Queer Festival is nearing to an end amid apparently growing awareness.

“Many did not know about the festival at all, and only got to know last year when some people opposed it,” said Woo Ji-young, secretary-general of KQCF.

More and more people, including foreign diplomats, have been participating in the event, the organizer said. In spite of this trend, however, many local companies are hesitant to join the event, and the organizers would like to see that change in the near future.

KQCF has held a series of events and a three-day film festival throughout the month of June, and will end with a parade on Sunday starting at Seoul Plaza.

Companies that attended this year’s KQCF included Google and American Apparel. Woo said both companies volunteered to participate in the festival on their own.

A spokesperson from Google Korea said it follows Google’s diversity policy. “We support community activities and provide training that addresses and combats unconscious biases employees may have.”

“Google Korea believes that respecting diverse opinions leads to revolutionary and creative ideas, which can be advantageous to everyone,” she said.

American Apparel is also an outspoken supporter of sexual minority rights.

Kim Hyun-a, marketing manager of its Korean unit, told The Korea Herald that Koreans, especially younger people, are increasingly finding homosexuality more justifiable than in the past.

“It is a stretch to say that South Korean society finds homosexuality acceptable. We fully support this movement, and participating in the KQCF is a part of our global efforts to bring LGBT equality forward,” Kim said.

KQCF said they reached out to several other companies with the help of foreign embassies, but were told there were budget constraints or other issues preventing participation now.

“It’s not like we don’t understand their situation,” Woo said. “There are many companies interested in LGBT as a new market, but realistically, it is difficult for them to publically state support in Korea just yet.”

But she stressed that KQCF plans to be in there for the long haul on seeking business support, citing last year’s Tokyo Rainbow Pride Parade as an inspiration.

“Many companies supported Tokyo’s pride parade last year, and we asked them how they did it. They told us it took them five years of constantly getting in touch with companies and shifting social mood.”

“We expect it will take around five years for us too,” she added.

By Sang Youn-joo (sangyj@heraldcorp.com)