Historically, the gay community has been associated with left-leaning politics and has been suspicious of “big business” and capitalism. Some of this is the result of the Communist Party links of some early Mattachine Society members, some was due to anti-gay policies within industry at the time, and some was simply due to the attitudes of the youth in the 60’s and 70’s when the gay rights movement began.
For many years there was a general assumption on the part of “gay leaders” that government would mandate rights and equality for gay people and that business would fight them all the way. However, in recent years there have been circumstances where that assumption seems to be backward. The support in the fight for equality now seems to come as often from business as it does from government.
In recent years there has been a growing trend of Business taking an advocacy position in favor of equality, especially in the workforce. It was Big Business that funded the fight to overturn Cincinnati’s anti-gay city ordinance in a 2004 vote. It was Microsoft’s confirmation of support for non-discrimination laws that influenced the vote necessary in Washington. In the small Utah town of Kanab, the local businessmen are waging battle with the city government over a definition of family designed to exclude gay people. And in Minnesota, the presidents of 50 “creative class” firms sent Governor Pawlenty a letter requesting that he oppose an anti-gay marriage amendment. The management of Kraft, Ford, and Bank of America are all fighting against anti-gay motions brought by stockholders.
But one story that has got little attention is a small-town dispute in Santa Clara County in California:
Los Altos is a quiet community neighboring San Jose. Although part of the Silicon Valley and in the midst of one of the nations largest metropolitan areas, Los Altos still maintains a small-town atmosphere.
In 2004, the Gay Straight Alliance of Los Altos High School requested that the City Council proclaim a day in June as Gay Pride Day. Although it was initially resisted, the proclamation was finally granted and the kids celebrated with a pizza party. No one else noticed much.
In February of this year the GSA made their request again and this time they were denied. Los Altos Mayor Ron Packard said he considered gay pride proclamations “divisive and not appropriate to our community”. And not only did the City Council say “No!”, but they changed the rules to not allow the request to be submitted again. Ever.
Then the GSA got some unexpected champions. A group got together at the Chamber of Commerce to get involved. Now instead of a Gay Pride Day, there will be a parade through the center of town.
Technical assistance is provided by the coordinator of the annual City of Lights Parade. Los Altos Community Foundation is sponsoring the GSA to reduce insurance costs. Los Altos service clubs, school boards, businesses, religious groups, the League of Women Voters and individuals got behind it. The Foothills Congregational Church of Los Altos will be sending a float to the parade. Contributions are coming in from citizens and businesses to pay for the event.
Now students from Los Altos High will be joined by students from the Gay Straight Alliances at high schools in Atherton, Mountain View, Palo Alto and Sunnyvale.
The Los Altos High GSA has to return to get permission to use city streets for the parade. Should the City Council resist, the County has offered to shut down Foothill Expressway, a major local thoroughfare.
Confounded by city officials either hostile to gay youth or fearful of the revenge of the anti-gay activists, the kids found allies in their local business communities. Let’s hope the trend continues.
Recent studies by Witeck Combs put LGBT spending in the US economy as over six billion dollars, and indicate that a significant number of LGBT people pay attention to which businesses are LGBT friendly and which ones aren’t.There’s a reason we’re seeing better diversity policies coming from Fortune 500 and other businesses than we are from our local, state, and federal governments — it has to do with where we spend our money. These kids aren’t ever going to forget which businesses supported this parade, and they’ll be loyal spenders at these businesses as their incomes increase over the coming years.
I agree with you Autumn. Let’s not forget too, that these kids will be potentially loyal employees for these businesses. As the baby boomers age, qualified employees are going to be at a premium. Loyalty to savvy employers will be worth its weight in gold.
Also, let’s not forget friends/family of these kids as spenders and potential employees.
Historically, the gay community has been associated with left-leaning politics and has been suspicious of “big business” and capitalism.Not sure I agree, without qualification. As in, yes it has been associated with that, but not because it is per se.The earliest activists were both activists and radicals in the true sense of the word. I doubt they’d have stuck their heads up at the time if they had not been. And this is something we should not forget — their energy achieved a great deal with early organising and campaigning. They were the first to openly challenge the false notion that we were all perverted, sick and self-loathing. I can appreciate that today.But the bulk of “the gay community” are not, have not, been left-as-in-socialist-leaning (other than in the mind of right-as-in-religious/social-fascists”). Or suspicious of big business or capitalism. The corporate world has always been full of us (and we include ourselves). As the risk of disclosure has fallen that much has become obvious; to those without, and to those left-leaning radicals within.There is also no natural reason why one must be both a fiscal conservative and a social conservative. Or a radical on both scores.I don’t even like the term “fiscal conservative” as applied today. I’d prefer “fiscally sensible” — and on that measure I’d exclude the current administration (massive ongoing deficits are not either sensible or eventually conservative given the resulting measures that eventually need to be taken). Too often the label conservative is adopted by (frankly) some seriously greedy and wealthy people who don’t want to pay any tax and couldn’t care about social decay because they (think they) can insulate themselves from the consequences. And then they’ll complain about how society has become so dangerous they cannot even walk down the street.Persoanlly I think the great bulk of gay men and women would be natural supporters of a platform that was both sensible with expenditure and socially enlightened. When I ever find such a party in the US …. I’ll let you know 🙂
Those who are anti gay have a ridiculous strategy.
They are confronted with some realities, that if they accepted those realities, might find themselves confronted with less visible and embarrassing spotlights on everything.
1. Support for injustice and cruelty towards a group never begets gratitude or success from that group.
2. Trying to perpetuate myth and mistinformation, results in the truth willing out, because gays and lesbians are intelligent and functioning people. Just saying they are’nt doesn’t make it so.
3. There is buying power amid gay folks and their supporters. More than the anti gay understand, or are never too eager to admit.
4. Gays and lesbians look, walk and talk like the average straight person. And what’s done in public is the same as what heteros do in public.
Essentially, nothing to get hysterical about.
It’s the anti gay getting THEIR way, which has prompted parades, protests and political action.
Gay folks getting their way would result in LESS of the aformentioned actions by gay folks.
Justice foments going to quiet corners and peaceful retreat.
It’s getting to the point now, that every time someone anti gay complains, and it’s usually about gay people acting or wanting to so much like straight people, it makes it difficult for the anti gay spot the gay person.
Or react to them as nastily as they would prefer to.
I just wanna go DUH!
That’s when I get seriously embarrassed by anti gay straight people.
They really don’t know how dumb they sound sometimes.
Having lived near Los Altos, I bet most of the community is with the kids and the local businesses.