Yolanda King at Out & Equal. Photo by Jerry Nunn_______
By Andrew Davis and Amy Wooten
Seminars, LGBTA business leaders and networking opportunities were all around as more than 1,500 individuals took part in the 16th annual Out & Equal Workplace Summit, held Sept. 13-16 at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago.
The summit—whose $2 million budget was provided solely through corporate sponsors—brought together LGBT employees; straight allies; and human resource and diversity professionals to educate, offer resources and address workplace trends that affect the LGBT community.
Rooms on several levels of the vast hotel were utilized for the event—a reflection of how much the conference has mushroomed over recent years. To compare, in 2001 there were only 250 attendees. ( Interestingly, more than 17 percent of the participants identified themselves as heterosexual. )
Something that was important to the organizers of the summit was that every component of the LGBT community was part of the summit. 'We've never been just a gay and lesbian event,' Out & Equal Workplace Advocates Executive Director Selisse Berry said during a media briefing. Proving this point, the conference featured forums such as 'B & T: The Silent Letters in LGBT,' 'The Cost of Transgender Health Benefits' and 'Why Bi? Understanding Bisexuality as a Workplace Issue,' while also offering networking options such as a reception for transgender people.
However, the aforementioned seminars were far from the only interesting or instructional ones. Other forums and workshops dealt with everything from the 'down low' to the changing LGBT presence in Hollywood. A seminar on gay marketing trends revealed some eyebrow-raising information as speakers addressed selling products to families, seniors and lesbians. For example, Sabrina Riddle of Olivia Cruises disclosed that 58 percent of its own customers ( according to a survey ) earn over $100,000 annually—a key factor that marketers would be wise to consider. Also, lesbians—who want their gender considered before their orientation, according to Riddle—comprise about 42 percent of the U.S. gay population ( about 8 million women ) .
The impressive roster of summit keynote speakers included actor and activist George Takei ( TV's Star Trek ) ; entertainment powerhouse Nina Jacobsen; writer Richard Florida ( Rise of the Creative Class ) ; and Yolanda King, daughter of Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King.
Takei moved many with his speech at the breakfast/plenary session that took place on Sept. 14, which involved him drawing among various similarities between the past and the present. During one humorous interlude, he talked about what the technology on Star Trek had in common with what people use today: 'We had an astounding sci-fi device on Star Trek that we all wore on our hips. We walked around all over with it. Whenever we wanted to talk with someone, we would get it, flip it open and start talking—loudly. But now it's become a very real nuisance.'
However, he used a hard-hitting example to illustrate what the LGBT community faces: 'Sixty-five years ago, when I was a boy, I looked out on the world behind the barbed-wire fences of U.S. interment camps. Pearl Harbor was fought and overnight, American citizens of Japanese ancestry were looked at as the enemy because we looked like the people who bombed Pearl Harbor. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed an executive order that ordered all Japanese Americans on the West Coast be summarily rounded up—with no trial or due process—and imprisoned in barbed-wire interment camps in some of the most God-forsaken places in the country. I still remember that scary day when U.S. soldiers with bayoneted rifles came to our home to force us out. ... It became normal for me to [ do things ] such as begin the school day with the pledge of allegiance; I could see the barbed wires as I recited the words 'and liberty and justice for all.' ... [ However, ] I still see an invisible barbed-wire fence separating me and my partner and another group of Americans from a normal life.'
Also present at this particular event was Marty St. Clair of GlaxoSmithKline ( GSK ) . St. Clair, a virologist at GSK and an inventor of the use of AZT in treating AIDS, told the crowd that she was proud of her company's role in HIV research and of her company's pro-diversity stance as well as its 'very active LGBT network.'
Another featured speaker was author Richard Florida, who spoke to a large early morning crowd at the Out & Equal summit on Sept. 15. The Rise of the Creative class examines creativity and its effect on economic development. Florida revealed that jobs come to innovative, warm and welcoming communities that house a 'creative class' of people. Of interest to those in the crowd, Florida's theory means that jobs also seek areas that are welcoming to openly GLBT people.
Florida, who is heterosexual, never expected the backlash that would occur from his 2002 bestselling book. 'When we reported this finding, I was not ready for what was about to happen,' he said, adding that he suddenly had a difficult time obtaining funding for his research. The backlash came from conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats alike.
The incredible resistance showed Florida 'how important it is what we do—gays and lesbians and straight allies—on the frontline.'
The professor and economist went on sabbatical to Harvard to study economic growth. During his stay, he wondered why companies were relocating to cities that already had a pool of creative, talented and entrepreneurial people. He posed the question to his young students, who replied that when they seek jobs, they want to go to cities that are diverse, energetic, creative and integrated. One student even said that seeing gay and lesbian couples holding hands in public would be a reason to go to that community.
A light bulb went off in Florida's head. 'Right now we are in a shift from an industrial to a creative economy. It comes from one source—us,' he said. 'When the economy is powered by creative communities, everything changes.'
This new shift greatly benefits the GLBT community across the U.S. 'In order to be creative, we have to be 'out.' We have to be able to self-express,' Florida added. That is because, he said, creativity requires diversity. Cities must be diverse, open and actively inclusive in order to grow economically and attract the good jobs.
Participants on all levels felt that the summit was particularly helpful and even fun. Several people took time to tell Windy City Times what they liked in particular about the conference. Reflecting on the summit, Jim Freeman, president of Out & Equal Workplace's board of directors, told Windy City Times that among his favorite parts of the conference were Takei's speech—which he called 'poignant' and 'powerful'—and spending time with his friends. Berry mentioned Takei's and Jacobsen's speeches but she also enjoyed how people have talked about how the summit has changed their lives. Greg Rohner, a summit co-chair, liked put the leadership techniques he has learned over the years to be put into play. However, Lori Fox, a transgender activist who was a workshop presenter, liked the bonding: 'The connections you make are amazing. This is truly family.'
