“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.

* UPDATE: Zimmerman was charged with second-degree murder on April 11,2012.

In case you missed it, Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by George Zimmerman as he walked down a street to a friend’s home in Sanford, Fla. Zimmerman, on a “neighborhood watch” patrol, called the police to report Trayvon as a “real suspicious guy” and “up to no good, or he’s on drugs or something.” Trayvon was wearing a hoodie; it was raining. The dispatcher asked, “Are you following him?” When Zimmerman said “Yeah,” the dispatcher said, “OK, we don’t need you doing that.” Zimmerman was armed with a Kel-Tec 9mm pistol. It took one shot to kill Trayvon.

When I first read of the news, Trayvon’s picture was in the story, and I was struck by how handsome and open he looked—in contrast to his murderer.

But chances are you’ve heard of Trayvon. As of this morning, there are almost 1 million electronic signatures on the change.org petition demanding that Zimmerman be arrested. Spike Lee and Wyclef Jean started the ball rolling with tweets. The press picked it up. Anderson Cooper was all about Trayvon last night. Because of the Internet, you can hear the 911 tapes, see Trayvon’s pictures and hear his mom say that he was killed because of “the color of his skin.”

As hard as it is to imagine, George Zimmerman has not been arrested. The law in Florida, a “Shall Issue” state where one is entitled to carry a concealed weapon, does not call for people to back down from confrontations because Gov. Jeb Bush signed the “Stand Your Ground” law in 2005. Prosecutors in Florida have apparently decided that prosecuting shootings in this case is not worth it as judges can dismiss the case before the trial begins under the concept of “true immunity” based on a “Stand Your Ground” assertion.

But there’s a lot of pressure on Sanford, a place that ran Jackie Robinson out of town during spring training. The city commissioners voted to demand that the police chief resign. If you do a little digging on the Sanford police, you’ll see that there’s been a history; the NAACP is collecting stories to deliver to the Department of Justice. In a larger context, this “Stand Your Ground” law, which has been passed in 21 states, needs very close examination. I am a fan of the Second Amendment, but this reads a little to me like “Shoot the Black guy first, ask questions later” law.

What can we learn here from a business context? History matters. Having a trajectory of good practices—or bad—is public knowledge these days, especially when something goes wrong and people have a little time to dig around the web. Many companies I visit still have a policy of being “modest.” It’s old fashioned and doesn’t serve your customers, employees or shareholders. Websites should have clarity and focus; today, hundreds of millions of people tell their own story on Facebook and Twitter. Your company must tell its own story on its website, yet most corporate websites are soulless (many look like they’re designed by soulless ad agencies and vetted by attorneys who don’t get out much).

I’ve been discussing strategic philanthropy with several companies, a program that has a theme, reflects the company’s values and can be integrated with the general business. There is nothing self-serving about building a pipeline of educated professionals and talented technicians by serving poor and underrepresented young people in a nationwide education mentoring program (the Rutgers Future Scholars program could be adopted nationwide, and Rutgers is an AAU research institution, so it is doing the research to understand how).

The kind of pressure that took years to create during the civil-rights era now takes days. What I’ve observed is that furtive and hateful things burrow underground, while the opposite struggles for sunlight. But what I’ve also found is that, although evil is not sustainable, it is well organized—while forces for the good often devolve their conversations into arguments over jargon. (Is it “I&D”? “D&I”? “DNI”? Just “I”?) Trayvon was murdered by a man with a troubled background who was empowered by a law that needs to be repealed. The force of the social media has taken the lead and traditional media is following. The lessons here for business are clear.

Ask the White Guy: Decision Making, Clarity of Values & What to Do When It Goes Horribly Wrong
Are you violating your values? If you are, you can’t hide from the repercussions.

Is This the End of Rush Limbaugh? Advertisers Flee Show
Rush Limbaugh learns the hard way after his “slut” comment that in today’s social-media world, negative reactions are swift.

Lessons on Values From Ellen & JCPenney
JCPenney’s support of Ellen DeGeneres after an attack by an anti-gay organization is a case study in clarity of values and CEO support.

Why Julie Goodridge Might Be the Scariest Person in Investment Banking
With an all-woman socially responsible investment firm, the head of NorthStar Asset Management is a force to be reckoned with in corporate America. What does she look for when assessing companies’ values—and who is under her microscope?

Rutgers Future Scholars Enhances Talent Pipelines With Corporate-Student Outreach
An event with Ernst & Young served to inspire students from low-income families to become the next generation of accounting professionals.

The post #Trayvon appeared first on DiversityInc.

Photo: George Gojkovic/Getty Images Sport/Getty Images

 Rush Limbaugh is paying the price for his latest misogynistic comment. In today’s social-media world, where everything is on immediate public display, advertisers are fleeing his show. 

Limbaugh has made racist, homophobic and anti-women comments before without major repercussions. But this time, after he called Georgetown University student Sandra Fluke a “slut” and a “prostitute” for advocating for women’s reproductive rights, the public outcry has been immediate and intense, thanks to Facebook and Twitter. He apologized, but the damage has been done, as eight major advertisers have pulled the plug. These include: Quicken Loans, Sleep Train, Sleep Number, Citrix Systems, Carbonite, LegalZoom, ProFlowers and, most recently, AOL.

Social Media: Viral & Unforgiving 

Similar to our recent news analysis of Lowe’s Muslim publicity gaffe, Limbaugh’s repercussions all too clearly showcase the unforgiving nature of social media. Social media has evolved in the last few years from an online networking tool to a powerful medium for the viral spread of information, especially corporate and political publicity gaffes. 

Social-media users were quick to lobby Limbaugh’s advertisers to pull advertising from the show. A real-time Twitter report shows that Quicken loans received approximately 1,500 tweets and LegalZoom received more than 1,200 tweets within 24 hours, while Facebook had two anti-Limbaugh pages by Saturday with more than 18,000 and 6,000 likes. Additionally, the petition posted on Left Action website’s Boycott Rush page had almost 50,000 signatures within 24 hours.

What’s essential these days is speed of reaction. If someone offends or states something not in line with corporate values, a response must be immediate. Limbaugh’s delayed apology on Saturday (three days after the incident and two days after Fluke’s response on Thursday) did little to quell the viral backlash. ProFlowers said Sunday on its Facebook page that Limbaugh’s remarks “went beyond political discourse to a personal attack and do not reflect our values as a company.” 

The radio host has a long history of inappropriate and controversial comments, which can easily be found with a simple Google search. But this is the first time advertisers have deserted him in droves. Here’s a short example of some of his past remarks: 

• [Secretary of State Hillary Clinton] once tried to join the Marines … They didn’t have uniforms or boots big enough to fit that butt and those ankles. (Sept. 23, 2009) 

• Obama’s got a healthcare logo that’s right out of Adolf Hitler’s playbook … Adolf Hitler, like Barack Obama, also ruled by dictate. (Aug. 6, 2009)  

• Feminism was established to allow unattractive women easier access to the mainstream. (April 10, 2009)  

• Look, let me put it to you this way: the NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips without any weapons. There, I said it. (Jan. 19, 2007)  

A Lesson in Corporate Values 

Limbaugh is neither the first nor the last to experience the repercussions of today’s instant-feedback social media. Here are some of our related examples: 

Jeremy Lin & Racism: 3 Ways to Stop Dangerous Stereotypes
Asian basketball star Jeremy Lin has become the subject of jokes and racist comments. What can you do to prevent stereotyping in your organization? 

Did Komen’s Lack of Board Diversity Cause Its Crisis?
The nonprofit organization’s board of directors is mostly Texan, homogeneous and wealthy. Here’s how the lack of diversity fueled its misstep over funding to Planned Parenthood. 

‘Blacks Should Not Be Satisfied With Food Stamps’: The Dangers of Stereotypes
Dr. Claude Steele, educator and expert on stereotypes, gives advice on the dangers of these kinds of misstatements, their impact on the workplace and how to handle them. 

‘I’m Puerto Rican – I’d Be Great at Selling Drugs’; ‘Not Married? She Must Be a Lesbian’
ABC’s comedy “Work It” has offended Latinos, LGBT people, TV critics and viewers. How can a company use its employee-resource groups, diversity councils and clarity of values to prevent multicultural missteps?

Ask the White Guy: Decision Making, Clarity of Values & What to Do When It Goes Horribly Wrong
Are you violating your values? If you are, you can’t hide from the repercussions.

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