More Than 20 LGBT Groups Issue Statement Opposing Arizona's SB 1070

Posted on Wednesday June 16, 2010

Recently, more than 20 LGBT equality groups including the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, the Equality Federation, and the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force issued a statement opposing Arizona's SB 1070 on the grounds that it will lead to racial profiling, discrimination and anti-immigrant extremism. The LGBT community knows all too well how easily people who "look different" or "act different" can be singled out for harassment and persecution. Indeed, this bill will have negative implications for our community as well as the broader Latino and immigrant community. Working closely and collaborative with our allies, including our Latino and immigrant brothers and sisters, is a fundamental tenet of how we will achieve full equality for all LGBT people.

HRC is proud to recognize the many constructive efforts going on within Arizona to strengthen and empower the Latino and immigrant community.

Whether it be citizenship fairs or small business training and development opportunities, there are a variety of positive efforts that go on every day and in which our volunteers are involved. Latinos are a vital part of the fabric of our society in Arizona and around the nation.

The statement that was issued by the LGBT organizations includes language about a boycott against the state. Where HRC is concerned, the boycott is quite limited in nature, as follows:

• The boycott only applies to bringing in outside conferences and meetings into the state. HRC did not and does not have any meetings planned in the state.
• The HRC dinner is not affected by the boycott. It is a local event produced by our volunteer leadership.
• Arizona continues to be a priority state for HRC. Effectuating positive change is now more than ever a priority. The boycott does not apply to political contributions made by HRC to candidates or causes in the state. Similarly, staff travel to the state is unaffected.

We understand that Arizonans stand on many sides of this issue. We have taken a principled stand that we believe is just as important to LGBT people as it is to Latinos and immigrants. The nature of our boycott is also quite limited. We encourage Arizona residents and visitors to patronize businesses that have supported the LGBT community and that are engaged in opposing SB 1070. Thank you for your continued support as we work through this issue.

© 2010 The Human Rights Campaign.
All rights reserved.

June 28, 2010
Tucson GLBT Chamber of Commerce Members
PO Box 14312
Tucson, AZ 85732

Dear TGLBTCC Members,

You may have seen that the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce® (NGLCC) has sent a letter to Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, and signed onto a coalition letter regarding Senate Bill 1070. We are writing today on behalf of the NGLCC to share with you our position regarding this legislation and to affirm our support of all lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) and allied businesses across the United States.

We understand that the state of Arizona and its residents has been particularly devastated by the most recent economic downturn, and that the actions taken by some of the state's elected officials has once again brought hardship to the business owners and their families of that state. After reviewing the language in SB 1070 the NGLCC, along with other national LGBT and other diverse business organizations — U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, U.S. Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce, National Minority Supplier Development Council, just to name a few - has decided to take a principled stand against what we see as a flawed and potentially very dangerous piece of legislation. Any policy that allows one group to be targeted over another is one that could be the slippery slope targeting any minority group of people – potentially opening our LGBT and allied communities up to state endorsed harassment. Additionally, the legislation also disproportionately affects multinational same-sex couples that cannot legally marry to keep a significant other in the United States.

We have informed Gov. Brewer of our intention to remove the state of Arizona from any site selection done for the Annual National Business and Leadership Conferences until a common-sense solution is reached that does not target any specific group of people based on their difference. However, we do still wholeheartedly support all LGBT business communities in their search for business development opportunities. It is our sincere hope that LGBT and allied owned businesses in Arizona will experience growth and expansion through the opportunity to work with other LGBT-owned businesses and corporations provided by the NGLCC's Supplier Diversity Initiative (SDI). To that end, the NGLCC is extending TGLBTCC Members the NGLCC-IBM Scholarship that will cover the entire cost of certification for any LGBT-owned business interested in connecting with LGBT-owned companies from around the country and America's top corporations. The SDI serves as the direct link between LGBT business owners, corporations and government – and provides the forum in which access to business development opportunities and growth continues to flourish across America and simply put, we want you to be a part of that.

The NGLCC appreciates every one of our 61 local, state and international chambers, including the TGLBTCC, and all of the members that make up those organizations. We strive in every way to ensure that the protection of our entire community is always foremost in mind and look forward to our continued work with your organization as we work together.

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office and with the help of your TGLBTCC leadership and the NGLCC team, we look forward to helping connect you to a world of opportunities.

Warmly,

 

Gay business group decries Ariz. boycott

by Ryan Randazzo - Jul. 2, 2010 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic

The Greater Phoenix Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce admonished national gay-rights groups for boycotting Arizona over its new immigration law and suggested the leaders read SB 1070 before taking action against the state.

The Washington, D.C.-based Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and 21 other groups issued a statement June 7 stating they would boycott Arizona over the bill. HRC is one of the largest U.S. gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights groups.

"SB 1070 essentially declares an entire class of people to be inherently criminal on the basis of their race and appearance," the groups wrote.

But Joseph Gesullo, chairman of the Phoenix chamber, told the national groups to back off because the boycott will hurt many of their own members.

The Phoenix chamber has 450 members, many who also pay annual dues to the Human Rights Campaign. HRC dues start at $35 annually but go as high as $1,000, according to the HRC website.

Gesullo was scheduled to help coordinate an annual dinner in Phoenix for HRC that brings it more than $50,000 in donations, he said.

"You cannot boycott a state and say you are not coming here, but that we still want that dinner," Gesullo said.

He wrote a letter to the leaders of the 750,000-member HRC and the national chamber stating his local group won't financially support anyone signed on to the boycott.

"We feel the boycott of the entire state of Arizona is counterproductive to the issue at hand," Gesullo wrote.

He said the Phoenix chamber does not "condone or condemn" SB 1070 and that he was troubled when representatives from HRC and the national chamber told him they had not read the bill.

The new law makes it a state crime to be in the country illegally. It states that an officer engaged in a lawful stop, detention or arrest shall, when practicable, ask about a person's legal status when reasonable suspicion exists that the person is in the U.S. illegally.

A spokesman for the Human Rights Campaign said Gesullo's protests have not changed the national groups' position.

HRC Vice President of Communications Fred Sainz said HRC created a news release when it signed on to the boycott, and the story was covered in the business media, but Sainz said HRC didn't seek publicity.

"It was never anything we intended to highlight," he said.

Sainz said HRC only intends "boycott" to mean that it will not bring meetings or conventions to Arizona. It had none planned.

When asked if his influential group's decision could prompt members of the gay and lesbian community to avoid vacationing or spending money in Arizona, he replied, "Yes, but that was not the intent of our use of that word boycott. Our use of the word was limited . . . to taking meetings to Arizona."

The national chamber sent a letter to Arizona members explaining the rationale for the boycott, but officials declined to comment Thursday.

Kathy Young, chairwoman of the Phoenix steering committee for HRC, said that the group will actually increase activity in Arizona because of the political climate here.

"Our commitment to keeping (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) businesses up and running has always been strong," she said. "No business has been taken away."

Young said that she doesn't support boycotting Arizona but is opposed to SB 1070.

"Any type of discrimination against any type of group is wrong," she said. "This is also a problem for the transgender community. If they are asked to produce documents (proving citizenship) it can out them. If they are dressed as a female but their driver's license says male, that can lead to harassment."

The national groups' statement also lashed out at Gov. Jan Brewer, "who last year stripped away earned health-insurance benefits from the same-sex domestic partners of state employees."

Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/2010/07/02/20100702biz-gaychamber0702.html#ixzz0sY6NapNT