“Red symbolizes love. That’s what marriage is all about,” says Charlie Joughin, a spokesman for the Human Rights Campaign, the LGBT-rights advocacy group that started the campaign by turning its equal-sign logo red. The HRC also is offering free equality stickers as a thanks to anyone willing to show their support.

What started as a simple color swap has evolved into massive public promotion, with online users—as true to our meme-hungry society—putting their own spin on the equality symbol. How will you show your support? Take a look at our selection of these powerful images, then visit the Human Rights Campaign flickr page for more.

Same-Gender Equality Lady Liberty & Justice

Same-Gender Equality Wedding Rings

Same-Gender Marriage Equality Painted Hand

Same-Gender Marriage Equality Words of Marriage

Same-Gender Equality Les Miserables

Same-Gender Marriage Equality Collage

Same-Gender Marriage Equality: We Are the 58 Percent

Same-Gender Marriage Equality Comes Out

Same-Gender Marriage Equality Zombies

Same-Gender Marriage Equality Grumpy Cat

The post Red for Equality: What Are the 10 Most Powerful Memes for Same-Gender Marriage? appeared first on DiversityInc.

Legal and political experts say that the Supreme Court’s hesitation stems from the idea of creating monumental changes to societal practices in one fell swoop. “There was a genuine concern about going too far, too fast,” says Charles Fried, a Harvard Law School professor and former President Ronald Reagan’s solicitor general. “I sensed a genuine regret that the court had this case before it now.”

The Supreme Court’s oral arguments this week on Prop 8 and the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) mark a historic event—it’s the first time in history the justices will hear arguments for cases advocating same-gender marriage. Their decisions could have sweeping impacts on the definition of marriage in the United States: a positive ruling could finally grant same-gender couples the right to wed nationally, affording same-gender couples equitable financial and tax benefits as heterosexual couples.

But is America really not ready for same-gender marriage to be recognized nationally? Reactions to the Supreme Court’s debate indicate that the public may feel the judges are just too old to “get it”: “Supreme Court Justices have entirely too much power. And some of them are too old to make decisions about a changing world,” tweeted Black American Author Terry McMillan, voicing similar sentiments expressed by Major League Baseball Player José Canseco Capas, Jr., and other social-media users.

Supreme Court Justices have entirely too much power.And some of them are too old to make decisions about a changing world.

— Terry McMillan (@MsTerryMcMillan) March 27, 2013

The rising support for same-gender marriage, however, is not simply a generational issue—it’s reflective of shifting American views of LGBT rights. Fifty-three percent of Americans in 2012 (up 32.5 percent from 2009) agree that same-gender couples should receive the same federal benefits as their heterosexual counterparts, according to a USA Today poll.

Opinions on same-gender marriage show increasingly positive long-term trends at an accelerated rate, according to PollingReport.com data cited by The New York Times.

But will increased public support have any affect on the high court’s decision?

Obama, Corporations Lean on Supreme Court

Increasing pressure and advocacy for same-gender marriage from high-profile politicians—including President Obama’s administration and more than 100 GOP leaders—corporations, and new legislation—such as the Pentagon’s decision to issue same-gender couple benefits—had many legal experts anticipating a victory for LGBT-rights supporters.

Amicus “friend of the court” briefs were filed to the Supreme Court, petitioning the justices to strike down Prop 8 and DOMA. Among corporations included on the brief were DiversityInc Top 50 companies Aetna, Ernst & Young, Johnson & Johnson, Marriott International, as well as Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Scientific, Exelon, MassMutual, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Microsoft, New York Life, The Ogilvy Group, Pfizer, State Street Corporation, The Walt Disney Company and Xerox.

Additionally, the Howard University School of Law’s Civil Rights Clinic filed its own amicus brief, which compared Prop 8, DOMA and similar anti-same-gender-marriage bans with Jim-Crow era laws that prohibited interracial marriage and reinforced continuing discrimination against Blacks.

Developing Same-Gender-Marriage Arguments: Prop 8 & DOMA

With hearings underway, the nine Supreme Court justices reportedly have been wrestling with Prop 8, first arguing over the case’s legal standing in court and also tackling LGBT-related issues including  the definition of marriage, political consensus behind the movement, the consequences of raising children in a same-gender-couple home and the historical legalities of LGBT relationships.

“The problem with the case is that you’re really asking, particularly because of the sociological evidence you cite, for us to go into uncharted waters … it is a cliff,” Justice Anthony Kennedy, the anticipated swing vote, said. “You’re doing so in a case where the opinion is very narrow. Basically that once the state goes halfway, it has to go all the way or 70 percent of the way … I just wonder if the case was properly granted.”

“Traditional marriage has been around for thousands of years,” said Justice Samuel Alito, indicating arguments to uphold bans against same-gender marriage. “Same-sex marriage is very new … And it may turn out to be a good thing; it may turn out not to be a good thing, as the supporters of Proposition 8 apparently believe.”

The comments from the judges fall true-to-form with The New York Times’ Adam Liptak’s predictions: “The decisions will almost certainly be closely divided. Even justices who agree about the right outcome may disagree about rationales … The only remotely plausible unanimous decision is dismissal on standing grounds in the Proposition 8 case.”

Despite the seemingly negative stance of several of the Supreme Court justices, Liptak indicates that there is still hope for the same-gender-marriage movement. “Be that as it may, practitioners and justices say it is the rare oral argument that wins or loses a case,” he wrote.

5 Potential Outcomes: How Will the Supreme Court Rule?

Arguments to uphold the bans still have strong backers, in particular is Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, who has been labeled as the “swing vote” in both cases. Kennedy previously voiced his hesitations toward backing pro-same-gender-marriage legislations, noting his belief that “a democracy should not be dependent for its major decisions on what nine unelected people from a narrow legal background have to say.”

According to CBS News, there are five possible outcomes of the cases:

1. Same-gender marriage is constitutional: Marriage for all couples would be recognized as a right and same-gender marriage finally would be recognized by the federal government. This would also override locally held bans against same-gender marriage in 39 states.
2. Same-gender marriage is not a constitutional right. This would set a large roadblock for the LGBT-rights movement, however, states would still be able to afford LGBT-couples the right to marry.
3. Marriage and civil unions are equivalent. Obama’s Administration has levied an argument that same-gender marriage should be extended to states currently recognizing civil unions and domestic partnerships, giving these couples essentially equivalent rights as heterosexual, married couples. The difference would remain in the terminology.
4. California’s same-gender marriages protected. Prop 8 would officially be ruled as unconstitutional and bans finally and permanently would be revoked.
5. Cases are dismissed. Amicus briefs have been filed by supporters of Prop 8 claiming the proponents have no standing in court—that the initial trail court case ruling was appropriate and do not have an adverse interest, or had to have been harmed in some way, to continue a lawsuit and to come before the Supreme Court.

“Even if you lose the case, and I think that’s very unlikely, you would say that the case has been a success because it’s changed public opinion so dramatically,” Richard Socarides, a former adviser to President Bill Clinton, told Politico. “It’s really unbelievable what a successful communications and litigation strategy has combined to do in such a short time.”

Legal experts anticipate decisions on Prop 8 and DOMA to come sometime this summer.

What Would You Pay to Witness the Prop 8, DOMA Strike-Down?

LGBT-rights activists and political enthusiasts lined up for front-row seats: Many have been  rallying and camping outside the courthouse since last week, hoping to be one of the 100 people admitted free access to the courtroom hearings. And news sources report that while seats in the courtroom are free-to-attend, having someone save you a place in the days-long line will cost you upwards of $6,000 a pop.

It’s a high price that many are willing to pay: There will be no TV broadcasts, media coverage or digital updates (including Twitter and social media) allowed in the room while the oral arguments are underway. Only a transcript and an audio recording will be released once the arguments have concluded.

Prop 8: Same-Gender Marriage Disputed in California

Although the Supreme Court had struck it down just months earlier, California’s Proposition 8 ban against same-gender marriage was voted into law in 2008. Thousands of same-gender couples in the state already had been legally married but others were prevented from doing so. Proposition 8 has since been struck down by two federal courts as unconstitutional. Should the Supreme Court rule against Prop 8?

What is DOMA? A Case for Discrimination Against LGBTs

The Defense of Marriage Act originally was passed by Congress and signed into law by  President Bill Clinton’s Administration in 1996: DOMA prevents the recognition of same-gender marriage by the Federal Government. The law was struck down last year by two federal appeals courts: Boston in June 2012 and New York in October, and Windsor v. United States now challenges the law’s constitutionality and claims discrimination against LGBTs.

If the Supreme Court rules in favor of the DOMA appeal, same-gender couples in states that recognize same-gender marriage would qualify for the same federal marriage benefits, tax breaks and Social Security survivor benefits that heterosexual married couples are entitled to under the law.

—Stacy Straczynski

The post Why the Supreme Court May Not Recognize Same-Gender Marriage appeared first on DiversityInc.

The announcement, made by Merck Foundation Executive Vice President Brian Grill, is an affirmation of the company’s core value of inclusion. Merck & Co. is No. 16 in the 2012 DiversityInc Top 50.

“We cannot continue to provide support to an organization with a policy that is contrary to one of our core beliefs. We remain ready and willing to re-consider our funding position in the event that the BSA were to revise its policy,” Grill said in a statement. “We’re confident that this decision is aligned with our high ethical giving standards and strong core beliefs, and reinforces our long-standing commitment to policies that prevent against discrimination.”

The company also plans to review its other funding decisions for 2013 and will evaluate whether those contributions align with the company’s policies and ethical beliefs.

Records show that in 2011, Merck gave $30,000 to the Boy Scouts of America and $10,000 to the Cradle of Liberty Council, which governs troops in the Philadelphia area, where Merck Chairman, President and CEO Kenneth Frazier grew up.

LGBT Discrimination & Boy Scouts

The Boy Scouts’ gay ban, which prohibits LGBT people from participating in the organization as leaders and scouts, has been in place for more than a decade. In June, the BSA was slammed by LGBT supporters when it failed to make any revisions to its anti-gay ban and refused to allow Jennifer Tyrrell, a lesbian, to resume leadership of her troop.

Other corporations have suspended funding to the BSA as well. Additionally, two Boy Scouts board members have spoken out on the issue: Ernst & Young (No. 6 in the DiversityInc Top 50) Chairman and CEO Jim Turley became the first board member and corporate leader to publicly urge the BSA to change its policy, and AT&T (No. 4) Chairman, President and CEO Randall Stephenson also issued a public statement promoting diversity and inclusion. Both companies earned 100 percent scores on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index.

Ernst & Young, No. 4 in The DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for LGBT Employees, and Turley in particular have been very visible supporters of diversity and inclusion.  Turley spoke at a DiversityInc event, for example, about his public pronouncement for the rights of women in Saudi Arabia, and he served as keynote for the Committee for Economic Development’s release of its “How More Women on Corporate Boards Would Make America and American Companies More Competitive” report.

Stephenson also spoke at a DiversityInc event, discussing the need for cultural diversity in education and corporations’ responsibility to build diverse talent pipelines among talented youth. AT&T is No. 8 in The DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for LGBT Employees.

Also read:

Supreme Court to Hear Prop 8, DOMA Cases

Diversity Wins: Demographic, Psychographic Shifts Decided Election

Gay-Cure Ban Stops ‘Quackery’ Therapy

LGBT Pride Facts & Figures

Ask DiversityInc: How Can Corporations Support Same-Sex Marriage?

Safe LGBT Spaces: What Schools Can Learn From Resource Groups

The post Merck Condemns Boy Scout Gay Ban, Halts Funding appeared first on DiversityInc.

The ruling is “a watershed moment in the legal movement for lesbian and gay rights,” said American Civil Liberties Union attorney James Esseks.

Sources anticipate that the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group of the House of Representatives will appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court.

The post DOMA Rejected by Federal Court in N.Y. appeared first on DiversityInc.

The string of victories achieved by LGBT-rights advocates in 2010 and 2011 continues. Within just the first two months of 2012, a California court struck down the Proposition 8 ban against same-sex marriage, Maryland has legalized same-sex marriage and legislation for same-sex marriage licenses is pending in Washington state. All of this follows a historic 2011 announcement by President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that a new U.S. policy will allow for more specific action against countries that do not support LGBT equality.

Click the images below to download a PDF, or click these links to expand: LGBT Pride Timeline and LGBT Fact & Figures.

 LGBT PRIDE TIMELINE 

1828: The term “crime against nature” is coined in the U.S. Criminal Code

1867: “Father of the LGBT Movement” Karl-Heinrich Ulrichs is the first to speak out for gay rights

1892: First use of “bisexual” appears in Charles Gilbert Chaddock’s translation of Richard von Krafft-Ebing’s Psychopathia Sexualis

1924: The Society for Human Rights, the first gay-rights organization in the United States, is founded. It is shut down by police within a few months

1955: The Daughters of Bilitis, the first national U.S. lesbian organization, is formed

1962: Illinois becomes the first state to decriminalize homosexual acts

1966: The National Planning Conference of Homophile Organizations is formed

1969: Stonewall riots in New York gain national attention for gay rights

1970: First Gay Liberation Day March is held in New York City; similar events are held in Los Angeles and San Francisco

1973: The American Psychiatric Association removes “homosexuality” definition as a mental disorder

1975: Minneapolis becomes the first city to protect transgender people by law from discrimination

1978: Rainbow flag is first used as symbol of gay pride

1979: First national gay-rights march is held in Washington, D.C.

1980: David McReynolds becomes the first openly LGBT person to run for president

1982: Wisconsin is the first state to outlaw discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation

1983: Rep. Gerry Studds (Mass.) becomes the first openly gay member of Congress

1989: Denmark becomes the first country to legalize same-sex partnerships

1993: “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy allows gays/lesbians to serve in the U.S. military as long as they are closeted
Minnesota passes the first state-wide law prohibiting discrimination against transgender people

1996: Supreme Court says protections for gays/lesbians are civil rights guaranteed to all U.S. citizens

2000: Vermont becomes first state to legally recognize civil unions for gays and lesbians
President Bill Clinton names June Gay and Lesbian Pride Month

2003: Supreme Court rules sodomy laws unconstitutional in Lawrence v. Texas

2004: Massachusetts legalizes same-sex marriage

2005: Civil unions become legal in Connecticut

2006: Civil unions become legal in New Jersey

2007: DiversityInc requires domestic-partner benefits as a prerequisite to make The DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity list (read our Methodology)

2008: 

• Diego Sanchez is appointed top legislative assistant to Rep. Barney Frank, making him the first transgender staff member on Capitol Hill
• California’s State Supreme Court allows gay marriage; Proposition 8 then eliminates it
• Connecticut legalizes same-sex marriage

2009: 

• President Barack Obama signs a law extending existing federal hate-crime laws to include those committed on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity
• President Obama renames June as LGBT Pride Month
• Iowa and Vermont legalize same-sex marriage

2010:

• Federal court declares California’s Prop. 8 unconstitutional
• The District of Columbia and New Hampshire legalize same-sex marriage
• President Obama signs law to end “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy

2011: 

• The Respect for Marriage Act is filed in U.S. House of Representatives and Senate to repeal DOMA and end federal discrimination against legally married same-sex couples
• New York legalizes same-sex marriage
• President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announce policy for more specific actions against countries that do not move to create LGBT equality

2012:

• The Human Rights Campaign assigns more stringent qualifications for ranking as a best place to work for LGBT employees on its Corporate Equality Index, with an emphasis on benefits for transgender employees
• Proposition 8 in California is ruled unconstitutional, but ruling is expected to go to U.S. Supreme Court
• Maryland and Washington state legalize same-sex marriage
• Ellen DeGeneres is named jcpenney spokesperson; CEO Ron Johnson supports her—and her strong values—despite protests from group calling itself “One Million Moms”
• A Boston court ruled the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional

Sources: Catalyst, National Women’s History Project

The post LGBT Facts & Figures appeared first on DiversityInc.

Showing real diversity leadership, President Obama today announced his support for same-sex marriage. His decision, applauded immediately by supporters of diversity and inclusion, came after pressure from the LGBT community and DiversityInc, among others.

“I have to tell you that over the course of several years as I have talked to friends and family and neighbors when I think about members of my own staff who are in incredibly committed monogamous relationships, same-sex relationships, who are raising kids together, when I think about those soldiers or airmen or marines or sailors who are out there fighting on my behalf and yet feel constrained, even now that ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ is gone, because they are not able to commit themselves in a marriage, at a certain point I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples should be able to get married,” Obama said in an interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”

His announcement comes a day after the voters in North Carolina overwhelmingly voted to ban same-sex marriage and prohibit local governments from offering domestic-partner benefits.

The lesson is one several CEOs have learned. Vice President Joe Biden took a visible stand on Sunday, when he announced on “Meet the Press,” a Sunday-morning TV talk show, his adamant support for same-sex marriage. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan very publicly added his adamant support.

Obama said he has supported other LGBT rights, including the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” after long deliberations. Read Ask the White Guy: What Changed Obama’s Mind About Gay Rights?

Several states are considering same-sex-marriage legislation, both positive and negative. The recent events include the California court decision to strike down the Proposition 8 ban on same-sex marriage that DiversityInc covered earlier this year. Minnesota faces a ban on same-sex marriages in November while Maine residents are being asked to approve marriage equality.

Fifty percent of Americans support same-sex marriage, according to the latest Gallup poll. By comparison, a 2000 Harris poll showed that only 15 percent of Americans at that time approved same-sex marriage. That may not be a comfortable-enough margin for Obama, but it’s a telling indicator that public conviction is changing.

Equality for LGBT people is not a bargaining chip but a fundamental civil right, as noted in the Human Rights Campaign (HRC)’s President Joe Solmonese’s official statement. And real leaders must unequivocally support ALL human rights. This lesson has been demonstrated in corporate America several times by diversity-management leaders, especially CEOs. Click on the images to download a PDF of our Diversity Leadership LGBT Pride Timeline and Facts & Figures.

Corporate Diversity-Leadership Lessons

There are several positive examples of CEOs and corporate leaders who have stood up for LGBT rights with great success. 

• Most recently, jcpenney CEO Ron Johnson very publicly supported the company’s decision to use Ellen DeGeneres as a spokesperson, despite boycott threats from a bogus organization called One Million Moms, which was really an offshoot of the anti-gay group Focus on the Family. Johnson cited DeGeneres’ strong values as a reason for choosing her. Jcpenney is No. 35 in The DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity.

• Last year, several DiversityInc Top 50 companies, including KPMG (No. 22) and AT&T (No. 4), publicly denounced a Tennessee bill prohibiting local governments from passing antidiscrimination measures. The companies were embarrassed after the Tennessee Chamber of Commerce, of which they are members, supported the bills. Other companies joining in the protest of the bill, which passed, included Pfizer, Comcast and Whirlpool (all three are on DiversityInc’s 25 Noteworthy Companies list).
  
• In Indiana, DiversityInc Top 50 companies such as WellPoint (No. 34), Eli Lilly and Company (No. 29) and Cummins (No. 18) have been fighting the Defense of Marriage Act (which also narrowly defines marriage as only for heterosexual couples). Nationally, according to the Human Rights Campaign, several diversity-management leaders have opposed the Defense of Marriage Act legislation, including Aetna (No. 24), The Chubb Corporation, National Grid, Time Warner Cable and Xerox (Time Warner Cable and Xerox are two of DiversityInc’s 25 Noteworthy Companies).
  
• Many DiversityInc Top 50 companies have been strong advocates for the federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act. This includes Ernst & Young (No. 6), Accenture (No. 12), Merck & Co. (No. 16), IBM (No. 17), KPMG (No. 22), Dell (No. 26), Eli Lilly and Company, Bank of America (No. 31), WellPoint, Time Warner (No. 40), The Coca-Cola Company (No. 46) and Capital One (No. 47).
  
• Companies including Cisco and PG&E have publicly opposed Proposition 8 in California, and companies including The McGraw-Hill Companies urged the passage of same-sex marriage in New York.
  
• Companies including Ernst & Young, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers (No. 1) recently announced that they will offset the tax penalties employees pay for having same-sex domestic-partner health benefits.

In the cases of all of these companies, their CEOs stood firmly and visibly behind their decisions to stand up for equality for everyone. Many of these CEOs have told DiversityInc in interviews why they are visible supporters of rights for everyone, including Bob McDonald of Procter & Gamble (No. 5), John Veihmeyer of KPMG, John Stumpf of Wells Fargo (No. 33), Ernst & Young’s Jim Turley, and PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Bob Moritz.

Read What Clinton’s Global LGBT-Rights Speech Means for Your Company.

Vacuum in Diversity Leadership

In the absence of real diversity leadership, those who oppose equality win. There are several companies, including Walmart, whose leaders have to this point been reluctant to advocate for equal treatment of employees, including domestic-partner health benefits for same-sex partners of employees.

The absence of this equality costs companies support in the community from LGBT people, from their friends and allies, and increasingly from younger people, according to several polls from Gallup and other organizations. Read Civil-Rights Progress: Helping LGBT Youth for more information.

It also costs companies a spot on the DiversityInc Top 50 list (a policy that’s been in place for the past four years). This year, when the HRC increased its qualifications for the Corporate Equality Index (CEI), including more provisions for transgender people, we added scoring penalties in the DiversityInc Top 50 for companies that received less than an 80 percent on the CEI. Read Our Analysis of the HRC’s Corporate Equality Index.

The momentum is shifting quickly toward marriage equality, despite the backlash factor remaining in states such as North Carolina. Diversity leadership means taking a public stand. Thank you, President Obama.

Read Ask the White Guy: Decision Making, Clarity of Values & What to Do When It Goes Horribly Wrong for more on the importance of communicating diversity-leadership values

–Barbara Frankel

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