The LGBTQ+ community is under attack, and it’s bad for your business!
With Pride Month in the rear-view mirror, as LinkedIn logos are wiped clean of rainbows, it’s time to take stock of the current state of the #LGBTQ+ community. There is no other way to describe the situation: the LGBTQ+ community is under attack. Legislators, Supreme Court Justices, and a small minority of very vocal citizens have taken it upon themselves to claw back the human rights of LGBTQ+ people. And all of this is very bad for employers, and it’s bad for your business.
Never mind countries like Uganda that recently doubled down on their discrimination of LGBTQ+ people. Let’s focus on the current state in the United States. According to the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), as of May 30, over 520 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in state legislatures, and over 220 of those bills specifically target Trans and non-binary people. According to the Williams Institute at UCLA, there are now more than 300,000 high school-aged Trans and non-binary youth in the US. 44.1% of those youth live in states where they have lost access to or are at risk of losing access to gender-affirming care. Things are so bad that on June 6, the HRC declared a state of emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans.
Credit: Human Rights Campaign
If that wasn’t enough, on the last day of Pride Month, the Supreme Court determined that an evangelical Christian website designer does not have to create wedding websites for same-sex couples and, therefore, has the right to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people. She took this action even though she was never asked to create a website by a same-sex couple and lied about that fact. This woman was so entrenched in her homophobic beliefs that she pre-emptively sued to ensure she would never be burdened with saying no to a prospective client. The reaction has been mixed with actors like Michael Imperioli – star of The Sopranos and White Lotus – ironically posting on Instagram, “I’ve decided to forbid bigots and homophobes from watching The Sopranos, The White Lotus, Goodfellas or any movie or tv show I’ve been in. Thank you Supreme Court for allowing me to discriminate and exclude those who I don’t agree with and am opposed to. USA! USA!” Ironic or not, the point was clear. Other celebrities have applauded his comments. Eventually, this will come to a head where an LGBTQ+-owned business discriminates against an evangelical Christian. Shock will ensue. Pearls will be clutched. Someone will be called a “Karen.” But not before a lot of LGBTQ+ people face discrimination.
The situation can best be summed up with an image of an anti-Trans legislative risk map created by journalist and Trans-rights activist Erin Reed. According to Reed’s analysis, 20 states are unsafe for Trans and non-binary people, with Florida simply labeled as “Do Not Travel.”
Credit: Erin Reed @erininthemorn
So why is this bad for your business? Simply put, because it’s bad for America.
According to polling firm Gallup, as of February of 2022, 7.1% of Americans identify as LGBTQ+, with over 20% of Generation Z identifying as such. That may not seem like a significant number, but it does represent more than 23+ million people. To put that number in perspective, only 57 countries on the planet (of 235) have larger populations. There are more LGBTQ+ people in the United States than there are people in Belgium and Greece combined.
But LGBTQ+ people are not hatched. They have parents – generally speaking, two of them. And according to research by the Trevor Project, 73% of parents said they supported their LGBTQ+ child. We could go even further to count supportive siblings, grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins, but for the sake of this argument, let’s focus on parents. Based on that research, that 23+ million LGBTQ+ people just became 57+ million LGBTQ+ people and their allies. That’s 57+ million people who are being impacted by anti-LGBTQ+ laws and legislation. If you have an LGBTQ+ child, you’re likely paying attention to what’s happening in your state legislature.
The result could be a higher level of inter-state migration of LGBTQ+ people and their allies from exclusionary states like Florida and Kansas to safer places like Colorado and California. With that migration goes labor, making it more difficult for employers in more exclusionary states to find employees to fill their jobs. While the national unemployment rate is 3.7% (the lowest it’s been in decades), it’s lower in places like Kansas (2.9%) and Florida (2.6%). Exclusionary states may be driving people away because of the actions of a few far-right politicians.
With those people goes their money. The median US income in 2021 was $69,717.00, meaning those 57+ million people make $4+ trillion in annual income. Not only will inter-state migration make it difficult for employers to find people, but it will also have a significant financial impact on the country, with some states experiencing a boom and some experiencing a bust. You can guess which is which. We are at risk of creating two “zones” within the country – one that is LGBTQ+ inclusive and one that is not.
It’s Time To Choose
It is no longer acceptable for employers to not pick a side. For years we have seen companies walk the line between supporting the LGBTQ+ community while still trying to eat their proverbial cake. Target tried to have it both ways in 2010, and it cost them millions. It doesn’t work, and it can have severe adverse impacts.
Anheuser-Busch experienced this recently with their use of Trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney in a Bud Light campaign. The beer brand received backlash from some on the right. Rather than take a stand and show their unwavering support of the LGBTQ+ community, they skulked away. They put the marketing executive behind the campaign on leave. Mulvaney recently broke her silence on her experience, sharing that she received zero support from the company. Bud Light had its Corporate Equality Index rating stripped because of its poor reaction to the controversy. Bud Light lost its position as the number-one-selling beer in the United States but didn’t lose their market share just because the far right stopped drinking their product. They lost it because the LGBTQ+ community stopped drinking it too.
There are other examples (Target again, LA Dodgers) where we’ve seen organizations talking out both sides of their mouth. According to Data for Progress, major Pride sponsors have donated more than $1.5 million to anti-LGBTQ+ campaigns. That same research found that most people change their behavior when they find out a company is donating to anti-LGBTQ+ politicians.
Credit: Data For Progress
The message is clear: pick a side! It’s not enough to say, “love wins” and then do nothing. To be in allyship with the LGBTQ+ community means you support us through the good times and the bad. Showing that support will definitely receive a negative reaction from some. The issue has become highly polarized thanks to right-wing politicians who think they can make social issues into wedge issues in their next campaign. There will be people who disagree with your company’s position, but you aren’t going to make everyone happy all the time.
You can’t publicly support the community in June and then donate to anti-LGBTQ+ politicians in July. I didn’t stop being gay on July 1. I’m gay 365 days a year, which means I’m paying attention to the actions of companies 365 days a year. You don’t get points for changing your logo in June. That’s called pinkwashing, and it’s performative BS.
Companies that are committed to including LGBTQ+ people are showing that commitment every day of the year. Disney is a perfect example of that. The entertainment giant has positioned itself in a standoff with the Florida governor by speaking out against that state’s regressive “Don’t Say Gay” bill and other legislation. As the state’s largest employer, they are wagering that their support of the LGBTQ+ community is more important than their relationship with state legislators. Disney is putting its money where its mouth is, and the result is an outpouring of support as people attended Disney’s Gay Days in droves, despite that state’s dangerous climate.
So what can employers do to express their unwavering support for LGBTQ+ inclusion? There are simple actions you can take:
Make your support for the LGBTQ+ community explicit year-round. Put information on your website and social media that makes it clear you are LGBTQ+ inclusive every day, not just in June. Put up signage in your physical locations that makes it clear your space is safe for LGBTQ+ people. Train your employees on what they can and must do to ensure your space is safe.
Be aware of places that are not LGBTQ+ inclusive. If you’re putting on a big event, do not host it in places where LGBTQ+ people aren’t welcome. That includes the 67 countries that criminalize LGBTQ+ people and places like Florida – a major destination for conferences.
Establish support systems to help LGBTQ+ employees who find themselves in states where they are not safe. Provide relocation services to your employees in places like Texas and Florida to move to states where they are safe and welcome. This action is in addition to things like covering the cost of gender-affirming care.
Provide financial support to LGBTQ+ organizations – nationally or locally – that are fighting against anti-LGBTQ+ laws.
Leverage your power as an employer and clarify your position with municipal, state, and federal legislators. Send a message that if you are to operate in their state, that state must be free of exclusion.
Do not donate to politicians and political action committees supporting anti-LGBTQ+ activities. Ever!
The time for action is now. It’s time for all employers that consider themselves LGBTQ+ inclusive to take a stand and show that their support of the LGBTQ+ community is more than just lip service.
Martin Niemoller was a German theologian and outspoken opponent of the Nazis. His words from a 1946 poem have never been more relevant:
First, they came for the communists, and I did not speak out because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak out for me.
It’s time to speak out.