Gay rights group asks Microsoft to return award
A gay and lesbian advocacy group that gave Microsoft Corp. a civil rights award four years ago has asked the company to give it back, blasting the software maker for withdrawing its support of a state bill that would have outlawed discrimination against gays and lesbians.
Darrel Cummings, chief of staff for the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center, said in a statement yesterday that Microsoft appeared to have yielded to anti-gay extremists. [...]
Microsoft spokeswoman Tami Begasse insisted the company’s decision to remain neutral came before the legislative session began in January. “(Hutcherson) urged us to change our position from neutral to negative, but we declined,” Begasse said.
In a story published yesterday, The New York Times reported that the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Ed Murray, said Microsoft’s top lawyer told him last month that the company was feeling pressure from Hutcherson and was concerned how its Christian employees might react if it supported the bill. Messages left with Hutcherson and Murray were not returned yesterday. (source)
So, in other words, Microsoft is lying to get out of this dilemma. I would rather they just came out and said, “We caved in to a religious bigot and said to our gay employees and gay customers, ‘go to hell’.” At least then I’d have more respect for them.
In the Business and Technology section of the Seattle Times, I read this interesting assessment.
John Aravosis, who has been covering the issue on his Web log after the news of Microsoft withdrawing support was broken by local alternative newsweekly The Stranger, said some people still remember a boycott organized by gays and lesbians against Coors beer in the late 1970s. The boycott reportedly stemmed from Coors’ moves to screen out prospective employees who were gay.
Although the company has changed its policies and worked hard to mend fences, memories of the boycott remain.
“For 30 years they’ve had to fight that spot on their name,” Aravosis said. “You don’t get away from that stuff. That’s the danger [Microsoft] has in the long term.”
But Steve Rubel, a public-relations consultant who tracks the impact of blogs on his industry, said he thinks Microsoft’s actions could have long-term impact only among people who feel strongly about gay and lesbian issues.
The bill is a localized issue and may not get the national or international attention of other controversies, he said.
“The people who are passionate about this subject, whether they’re pro or con, will be vocal about it,” he said. “Until they find something else to write about.” (source)
Probably true. Bloggers like myself will not keep writing about this. I will go on to other issues and talk about them.
But for some one who is a “public-relations consultant who tracks the impact of blogs on his industry” to suggest that the impact of Microsoft’s actions will not be so significant over time because we (bloggers) will “find something else to write about”, really shows that he doesn’t fully understand how things work on the Internet.
You see, all I have to do as a blogger is to make my opinions on any given subject clear in my blog. The search engines that index this data will do the rest. I don’t have to keep talking about it. In time, when someone types in a search phrase such as “Microsoft job opportunity fairness” or “Microsoft gay rights”, my opinions, along with many others, will pop up with the freshness that they were written just yesterday. They become a matter of record long after the newspapers have stopped talking about them and long after they are available online from the newspapers.
It’s a beautiful thing.
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Bill,
I have a follow-up to my comment here.
I wrote in my comment, "They were talking about harrassment and benefits and protected groups, etc. Here's the official Equal Employment Opportunity/Position on Harrassment list of 'protected' groups. '... age, sex, race, color, creed, religion, national origin, veteran status and/or disability ...' At the end of the talk we could ask questions. I raised my hand and asked, 'You've talked a lot about benefits and protected groups. Is there an official company postition on any of this relating to people's sexual orientation.' Gasps from the crowd (and a few 'yeah's). The speaker said, 'Sexual orientation, I'm not sure what you're referring to.' Yeah right. So I said, 'I'm referring to homosexuals, domestic partner benefits, etc.' More gasps. He said that he considered 'sexual orientation' kind of wrapped up in the 'sex' portion of the list of 'protected' groups. I said that wasn't really the same thing but ok. He said that medical benefits were not extended to employee's domestic partners, only spouses. I hadn't expected anything different but at least they know someone is thinking about that and maybe a few of the other people there will think about it too."
We just had a new "accepted use of company systems" document that we all had to review and sign. It includes, "Use of systems is never permitted for sending, storing, or knowingly receiving or accessing any message, material, or web site that promotes discrimination, encourages discrimination, or endorses discrimination on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin or ancestry, age, marital status, gender, political affiliation, disability, or sexual orientation."
Pretty much the same list as before (with some things worded a little differently) but now "sexual orientation" is explicitly included. Yeah! I don't know if there is one "official" company list of "protected" groups, but I know this document was approved all the way up, so somebody had to choose to make that inclusion and many people had to sign off on it.
Maybe there's hope for us after all.
Tom
Thank you Tom we need more people like you out there in the world.
Tom,
I was really taken aback by your comment, in a good way. :)
It amazes me how the Internet works, and I'm in IT. Intellectually, I get it. But in a practical every day way, it boggles my mind a bit. I mean, the amount of data in these blogs is immense. Yet, the search engines are able to sort it all out and make heads or tails of it. At times, I wonder, does any of this matter?
Then, a few weeks ago on my way home from work, I was listening to the news, and the announcer said, “When we come back, we'll look at the blogsphere and weigh in on what the bloggers are saying about this.” So, I was thinking that maybe people do actually assimilate this data. Of course, I don't think about that – how what I write might influence anything because I'm used to, as a minority (an an unpopular one at that), not being listened too. What's really weird for me is when I'm searching for something and I see my own site coming up in the search list. It seems to happen quite often.
You and I have something in common. We are both courageous people. It took some guts for you to stand up in front of your fellow employees and ask those questions. That's what I was taken aback by. I assume that you are a straight man. If you are, it blows me away that you would put yourself on the line for people like me. I'm sorry, I'm just not used to it. You have no idea how much hope that gives me. I am so honestly sincere about saying that. If you are gay, then you are also very courageous because you just took the first step towards freedom.
Either way, it was very courageous on your part. And, it makes me concerned for you. If you are a straight man, no doubt that some of the employees you work with will make the conclusion that you are gay, and treat you accordingly. This is how I lost my job. I didn't come out to anyone at work. I had a fellow employee – actually my boss – who came on to me. She made it very clear that if I didn't “put out” for her, there would be “problems”. I was young and in those days, sexual harassment was common and there weren't the laws around that we have today.
I was young but I wanted nothing to do with it. When I showed no interest in her advances and finally told her to lay off, she said to me, “Why? Are you gay?” No one had said anything to me like that before. From the shocked look on my face, she immediately knew that I was gay. My job went down hill from there. I could do nothing right and was written up several times for different things. Withing two weeks of her finding out I was gay, I was called into the supervisor's office. His name was Herb, and he said these exact words to me, “I hear that you are fag.” What a way to start the conversation. I said nothing. It was one of those very awkward moments that seemed to last forever. He eventually said, “We don't hire faggots. You are done here. We will send you your final check.” With that, he called for another worker to escort me off the premises. All of this without me saying a single word. I felt stunned actually - like I was watching my life in front of me and this was happening.
It was after that that I found a job at the Catholic School. But, I was deeply depressed. I was what is now called the “suicidal gay youth”. That's how bad a place I was in. I cried a lot and wondered about the worth of life. I would spend hours sitting in this lovely garden filled with beautiful flowers because it was the only beauty I could find. Everything else was ugly. I had Kent, but we couldn't acknowledge our relationship as even existing, to anyone. Our family didn't even know about us.
I'm so glad that I stuck around. I would have missed so much. Today, right now, is the happiest part of my life. I am content with my life and myself. It was a long and very painful road to get here, but I made it. People found out about Kent and I along the way. The ones who accepted and embraced it are still in our lives. The people who could not accept it are no longer in our lives. That's the way it has to be.
So, while I am very gratified that you would stand up for my community, I am worried about you. I don't want you to loose your job and I know from first hand experience just how ugly bigotry and hatred can be. I want to tell you that you did the right thing. But I also know that doing the right thing often has unpleasant side effects. So, be careful. There is so much hatred out there.
Also be aware that not all states have protections for “sexual orientation”. Most don't. The one's that do, such as Connecticut, also have exemptions for religious organizations or places of business with less than 25 people. They can still fire a gay person for being gay. So your state may not accommodate that. If it doesn't, then some companies add the protection voluntarily. They are usually larger companies and usually not religious in nature.
Even in Connecticut where we have protections for gay people, health insurance coverage is another issue. Since my company hires insurance companies that are based out-of-state to provide health insurance coverage for us, I can't cover Kent on my policy because we aren't married. And, since the company is out of state, if we chose to get a Civil Union, they still would not be obligated to cover Kent. This is why I keep saying that Civil Unions are still very unequal.
We are lucky though. We both make enough that we can afford it. It's not optimal, but at least we have health coverage should we need it. We just have to pay twice as much as married couples to get it.
From your comment:
It is a beautiful thing. Because of your site and people like you demanding that others look at these issues, deal with these issues, and stop touring a blind eye, people like me are moved to do things they might not have done otherwise. Thank you. I know it wasn't much, but it made me feel brave and strong and a part of something that needs to be talked about. It felt good to shake things up and I would have been really disappointed in myself if I had decided to just ask later or not at all.
Your action was much more than you think it was. Others will now think about it. It's like a rock tossed into a pond of water. It has ripple effects. When you plant a seed such as this, you never know what will come of it. It's truly a very powerful thing. Each of us has more power than we realize.
I'm thinking of getting back into music again. I miss it. There are works that I'd like to do – for myself. I don't have the need to perform again. The last set of works I did were the Brahms Sonatas for Violin and Piano (I did all of them) and the Bach six Partitas and Sonatas for unaccompanied violin. I never got to them in college and everyone was telling me how wonderful they were. So, I took a year, analyzed them, got them to performance standard, memorized them, and put down my violin, and stopped playing.
I remember after practicing the famous Bach Chaconne (analysis) in d minor, that a music student came up to me with his long flowing black hair and said to me, “Hey man, that's the Chaconne!” (he was a voice major). I said, “Yes.” He said, “Man, isn't that like seriously bitchy? No one here has ever played that.” I said, “As with all things in life, you have to embrace it and make peace with it because it's teeth are bigger than yours.” I left him thinking about that one. ;)
Thanks again Tom, for being courageous and fighting injustice. In the end, we will all win from doing that.
Bill,
It is a beautiful thing. I remember the first time I found your site after searching for something like "historical opinions on interracial marriage". I was trying to find out if there were reasonable comparisons to be made between interracial marriage struggles and your struggles. The posting that came up was pretty old, I think more than a year old for sure, but it brought me to your site where I've learned a lot and been moved a lot and that is a beautiful thing.
Along those lines, I thought I'd share something that happened to me this past week at work. I just started a new job three weeks ago after having been laid off about three weeks before that. I was very lucky to get such a quick turnaround on my job search and overall I think I'm in a better spot. There was something that kind of worried me about my new company though.
The founders of this company are very religious Christians. Not that there's anything wrong with that... In their new hire literature, they talk about how they were almost bankrupt 25 years ago after struggling along for two years and how they turned their company over to God to do his will and how everything went great from there. "God" talk even plays a big part in the company's official Core Values.
We Value ...
People
Because we believe they are created by God in His image for a unique and definite purpose.
...
Careful Stewardship of our resources
Because we believe eveything we have comes from God, and we need to use what we are given for the good of others.
...
Integrity before God and man
Because we believe God is sovereign in the affairs of mankind and that we are accountable to Him and to people we work with for our actions and attitudes.
You get the idea. All nice sentiments, sure, and ones I pretty much agree with, but I've never seen "God" so prominently mentioned in any company's mission statement before. Needless to say, I was a little worried.
After having been at my company for a few weeks, I've found that things are pretty normal there. A good mix of people, maybe a little conservative, but oh well. This past Thursday I attended the new hire orientation/learn about the company and your benefits thing.
They were talking about harrassment and benefits and protected groups, etc. Here's the official Equal Employment Opportunity/Position on Harrassment list of "protected" groups. "... age, sex, race, color, creed, religion, national origin, veteran status and/or disability ..."
At the end of the talk we could ask questions. I raised my hand and asked, "You've talked a lot about benefits and protected groups. Is there an official company postition on any of this relating to people's sexual orientation." Gasps from the crowd (and a few "yeah"s). The speaker said, "Sexual orientation, I'm not sure what you're referring to." Yeah right. So I said, "I'm referring to homosexuals, domestic partner benefits, etc." More gasps. He said that he considered "sexual orientation" kind of wrapped up in the "sex" portion of the list of "protected" groups. I said that wasn't really the same thing but ok. He said that medical benefits were not extended to employee's domestic partners, only spouses. I hadn't expected anything different but at least they know someone is thinking about that and maybe a few of the other people there will think about it too.
I've been lucky to work for progressive companies in my past two jobs before this one. They both openly included "sexual orientation" on their list of "protected" groups and offered domestic partner benefits. A little while ago, I probably wouldn't have said anything in an open forum like I did last week. But damnit, someone needed to say something. Someone needs to let my company know that if they want to treat their employees right and "use what we are given for the good of others" as they say in their core values, they need to get on the right side of this debate. I plan to be that person.
It is a beautiful thing. Because of your site and people like you demanding that others look at these issues, deal with these issues, and stop turing a blind eye, people like me are moved to do things they might not have done otherwise. Thank you. I know it wasn't much, but it made me feel brave and strong and a part of something that needs to be talked about. It felt good to shake things up and I would have been really disappointed in myself if I had decided to just ask later or not at all.
I haven't posted in a while, but in that time I've found out you got a Masters studying music and now that you are an IT manager. I have a minor in music and still compose for piano and am a programmer analyst. I knew there was something I liked about you. Musician, computer nerd, always pushing yourself and others to be better. You go boy.
Thanks again for giving me a good kick in the ass. You are making a difference. Don't ever forget that.
Tom