LGBT-Certified Businesses Win Historic Opportunity to Supply the Super Bowl For the First Time, NFL Includes LGBT-Certified Businesses in Diversity Initiative Team NGLCC WASHINGTON, D.C.—Nov. 10, 2014—When the NFL teams take the field during Super Bowl 50 in Feb. 2016, there will be more than one winner in the stadium. Diversity will
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By Eugene J. Patron, communications & marketing director, Point Foundation @PointFoundation Jorge Valencia, executive director and CEO of Point Foundation (left), accepts a check from Peter Lichtenthal, president of Bumble and bumble, a division of The Estee Lauder Companies. Today, it is easy for people to name celebrities and sports players who have publicly come out as being gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. However, every year during the in-person interviews with finalists for Point Foundation’s LGBTQ higher education scholarships, there are young people who say to the review panel, “This is the first time I have met a group of openly gay professionals.” Many of these bright young people from communities around the country have never been introduced to a gay doctor, a lesbian lawyer, a transgender entrepreneur —
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By Suzanne Squyres Clint W. Grimes Procurement veteran Clint Grimes joined Time Warner Inc. in 2004, a pivotal point in the development of the company’s supplier diversity initiative. “At that time, Time Warner was building out its enterprise sourcing organization in an effort to standardize the approach to supplier selection across the organization,” said Grimes, the company’s executive director of procurement services and supplier diversity. “The specifics of the TW role were right up my alley.”
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By Jama Shelton, LMSW, Ph.D., Forty To None project director @PagingDrJama Jama Shelton In America, it is estimated that up to 1.6 million youth are homeless each year, and up to 40 percent of them identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. Yet, only up to 7 percent of the general youth population does the same. The Forty to None Project is working both proactively and reactively to address the issue and, ultimately, reduce the disproportionate percentage from 40 percent to none. It is asking the business sector to join the effort.
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By Suzanne Squyres TailsSpin’s Jeff Manley and Jusak Yang Bernhard with Administrator Maria Contreras-Sweet of SBA.jpg Against many odds, Jusak Bernhard and Jeff Manley have a successful business. Leaving behind award-winning careers in the entertainment industry and their home in Los Angeles, they moved to Savannah, Ga., where they opened TailsSpin Pet Food & Accessories. On the first day of business, the store tallied a single sale of 89 cents. Now in its seventh year, it employs 26 people and has three locations, one of which sparked the renaissance of a once-derelict strip shopping center.
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By Melissa Lowery @Melifornia Wanda Brackins In the past few decades, diversity has emerged as a critical factor in the ability of businesses to succeed in an increasingly global marketplace. Leaders understand that in order to innovate, attract clients and partners and retain and cultivate the best talent, organizations must foster diverse, inclusive work environments. But, when the efforts of committed leaders plateau, how can an organization attain the breakthroughs it desires?
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LGBT History Month, a time to reflect on the struggles faced by LGBT individuals and the history of their civil rights, is observed every October. It was first established in 1994 to coincide with National Coming Out Day on Oct. 11. LGBT History Month was founded by Rodney Wilson, a Missouri high school teacher who believed that a month should be devoted to the celebration and teaching of gay and lesbian history.
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Eric HolderU.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced his resignation on Sept. 25, 2014, and will step down as soon as the U.S. Senate confirms his successor. A stalwart supporter of civil rights of LGBT individuals, he said that one of his greatest accomplishments was aiding in “the promise of equality for our LGBT brothers and sisters and their families.” The country’s first African-American attorney general, Holder’s tenure at the U.S. Department of Justice includes the implementation of reforms to the criminal justice system and enforcement of major civil rights initiatives, including lawsuits against Texas and North Carolina for obstructive voting laws.
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By Richard Oceguera @RichardOceguera Richard Oceguera It’s August 2014 in Little Falls, N.J., and I’m giving a talk to a group of 23 seasoned small business owners at their weekly leads group. “Who here absolutely loves networking?” The room is silent and only two hands go up. “Who here has been trained in the art of networking? Or, as I like to call it, the art of human connection?” Not a hand goes up this time. Finally I ask, “If there was a way to build your business that didn’t included networking, would you prefer that?” Every hand immediately flies up.
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October is LGBT History Month, and we are all beneficiaries of the contributions made by LGBT people in the arts, sciences, sports, entertainment, government, philanthropy, business, etc. Spend a few moments reflecting on the brilliance of the many people who have shaped our collective history — people who happen to be LGBT. In the pages
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