OutPerform | A weekly newsletter on LGBTQ+ Equality - Issue #27
Liz Cheney and Polish municipalities respective Mea Culpas, Davos is almost gay-friendly, the World Bank Doing Business scandal, key LGBTQ+ appointments in the Boardroom and other news.
Welcome to this week’s edition of my weekly equality news digest, (from a beautiful autumnal New Fairfield, CT) where I share important news, updates, and commentary about the LGBTQ+ equality movement globally. Questions, feedback, and comments are always welcome, and please share with your networks to continue helping us in moving the LGBTQ+ equality conversation forward.
US NEWS
Liz Cheney is sorry, not sorry.
Wyoming Republican Liz Cheney revealed this week that she regretted not supporting same sex-marriage in 2013 despite the public rift it caused in her own family. For the first time in history, most Republicans back same-sex marriage (at 55%), according to Gallup. A coincidence? Maybe not.
The Inheritance: best play at the Tony Awards.
Matthew Lopez’s epic seven-hour The Inheritance, which looks at the inter-generational links in our community (my thanks yo Steve Elmendorf who hosted me with the most amazing seats pre-pandemic), took home a well-deserved Tony for Best New Play. An occasion to remember Terrence McNally, who was a mentor to Lopez, and died of complications from Covid last year.
An interview with trans leader Karen DeJarnette at Expedia.
This week Out Leadership published my interview with Karen DeJarnette, the first of a series of stories giving visibility to trans leaders in corporate America. Karen believes “How companies treat one segment of the underprivileged community’s population represents how they truly feel about all those communities.” Read the full interview here.
The mysterious LGBTQLoyalty fund
In the past two weeks the LGBTQ+-focused ETF, which invests based on how popular brands are within the gay community, made new announcements. Launched this May by BobbyBlair with prominent Board Members such as Barney Frank, Martina Navratilova, Orlando Reece and Billie Jean King, it has been flying under the radar.
GLOBAL NEWS
Bretton Woods: the Doing Business scandal.
As the head of the IMF, Kristalina Georgieva, tries to survive the storm surrounding the revelations that (shock, horror) the annual Doing Business rankings were gamed to allow China to have a higher rank than should have been the case. I shared my thoughts on Steve Clemons' Al Jazeera show which will be broadcast tomorrow (Friday, 30th September). I wrote an op-ed on the underlying roots of the issues at the World Bank including the lack of diversity. Finally, here is a different piece on why LGBTQ+ inclusion should be part of business climate indexes. When LGBTQ+ inclusion is not measured countries like Singapore and Saudi Arabia a with their appalling records on LGBTQ+ discrimination often finish near the top of the ‘Doing Business’ table.
Switzerland approves same-sex marriage (again) .
Wonderful news from Switzerland! Last week our Swiss friends voted overwhelmingly (64%) in favor of marriage equality making it the 30th country with such provision. Switzerland will alter its civil code to enshrine marriage and adoption rights for gay couples. It might make your presence at Davos and your ski weekend in Verbier this year a bit more palatable #EatTheRich.
Poland: some municipalities roll back “LGBT-free” zones.
The Financial Times quoted Marcin Warhol, a United Poland MP, saying the roll-back was a “sad day” and that his region has given in to “blackmail from officials from the European Commission”. You call it blackmail, we call it enforcing the EU’s human rights values.
West Africa: the forgotten struggle.
Two articles in French here and here describe the difficult lives of LGBTQ+ West Africans caught in the radicalization of Islam in Guinea or Mali. LGBTQ+ refugees are heading to the more politically stable Senegal where they are often not welcome.
East Africa: the censorship of “I am Samuel”.
On September 23, Kenya’s Film Censorship Board (KFCB) slapped a ban on “I Am Samuel,” (watch the trailer here) claiming the documentary by Peter Murim contravenes Kenyan values. Neela Goshal at HRW reminds us it is not the first time. The silver lining: free advertising by KFCB for a beautiful film. Also Kenyans should get VPNs.
India: Parmesh Shahani queers the workplace.
Queeristan, the inspiring and entertaining book by visionary Parmesh Shahani making the case for workplace equality in India, just won the prestigious CK Prahalad Best Business Book of the year award for 2021. Parmesh, a prominent voice in business, can be credited for having given a glamorous flair to coming out in Indian workplaces. I interviewed Parmesh last October about his latest book, a business book that makes the case for workplace equality in India while weaving in the glamour of Bollywood, autobiographical encounters from Parmesh’s life, and stories of his interactions with some of the biggest names in the global LGBTQ+ equality movement. Watch the full conversation here.
Revisiting the World Bank: a new report on SOGI issues.
Ironically, the Bank hosted a conversation during the UN General Assembly on the launch of a new ranking system on…wait for it….LGBTQ+ inclusion! The report, the Equality of Opportunity for Sexual and Gender Minorities (EQOSOGI) is available here. It examines LGBTQ+ laws and policies in 16 countries and ranks them. During the meeting, Menaka Guruswamy shared lessons from India’s decriminalization while UN Independent Expert Victor Madrigal, who launched a campaign for global decriminalization, expressed concern with the Ghanaian situation. If you want to understand better why the World Bank, and other Multilateral Development Banks, is key to advance LGBTQ+ economic empowerment, watch this new East Meets West’s podcast with Phil Crehan, the authority on MDBs and LGBTQ+ issues.
Japan: inching its way towards same-sex marriage.
Pinknews reports that the elections might be a turning point on same-sex marriage. As a reminder, Japan is the only G7 country with no form of national recognition of same-sex unions.
THE QUEER AGENDA: Board Diversity
This week we saw some key LGBTQ+ appointments in the Boardroom. Beth Ford, CEO of Land O’Lakes, joins the Blackrock Board (Blackrock also joined Out Leadership’s member companies this week). Fmr. State Senator Art Torres - also latino - joined the Board of CareDx, Inc.
Fishbowl conversation on Board Diversity.
This Thursday at 7 pm ET I will join Building Pathways to Greater Board Diversity with Shannon Gordon from Boardlist, Guy Primus from Board Challenge, and John Kuo from Ascend 10x25. The event is hosted on the Live Fishbowl app. Here is the invitation to the event if you want to get up to speed on the board diversity conversation.
Testimony on supplier diversity at California Assembly this Friday.
This Friday (2 pm ET) I will testify in front of the California State Assembly's Select Committee on Corporate Board and California Workforce Diversity, invited by Asm. Holden. My testimony will focus on the private sector and LGBTQ+ supplier diversity. Here is the link to listen in on this hearing.
Out & Equal conversation on Board Diversity.
The O&E 2021 Workplace Summit kicks off next week (October 7th 4:30 p.m ET). Out Leadership is hosting a workshop called “LGBTQ+ Representation on Corporate Boards”. My dear friend and colleague Matt Fust, Senior Advisor, Out Leadership will moderate a discussion with Christie Smith, Sr. Managing Director at Accenture; Board Member (Endo International; USA Field Hockey) and Denice Torres, Corporate Board Member (bluebird bio, Glaukos, Karuna Therapeutics, Resilience, Surface Oncology) and yours truly. You can register for the Summit here.
NACD Center for Inclusive Governance.
Just this morning the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), announced the launch of the NACD Center for Inclusive Governance to address the need for boards not only to diversify, but also to ensure that those new and diverse voices on boards are heard. Last month Out Leadership became an NACD Board diversity partner and I am honored to represent Out Leadership as one of their advisors to ensure that LGBTQ+ people are part of the board diversity conversation. Read more about the launch here.
IN OTHER NEWS.
ILGA 2022 launch call for proposal on thematic pre-conference proposals.
The 30th ILGA World Conference, hosted by the It Gets Better Project, will be held in LA Long Beach, California, from 2 to 6 May 2022. The call for proposals is now open.
Share your coming out at work story with Out Leadership.
National Coming Out Day is Monday, October 11, 2021. Send your story and picture to my Out Leadership colleague Cameron (Cameron.wu@outleadership.com). We will be featuring entries as part of a new Instagram series on the topic throughout October.
Thank you for reading. Please share. And see you next week.