Podcasts about corporate equality index

On today's podcast, Founder and CEO of af&co., Andrew Freeman shares Expert Tips and Trends in Travel, Luxury Hotels and Fine Dining, and Strategies to stay relevant, resourceful, and respected in your industry   BACK STORY Named as one of the Top 25 Most Extraordinary Minds in Sales and Marketing by the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International, and was named a PRNEWS CEO of the Year Honoree for 2023, Andrew brings a combination of deep industry experience, passion and creativity to every endeavor. With 40 years in the hospitality industry and af&co. celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2025, Andrew has built a legacy of innovation while staying at the forefront of industry trends. With over 200 restaurant and hotel launches, Andrew and his team have provided branding, marketing, PR, and operations consulting for hundreds more, including spirits, wine brands, and destinations. af&co. has also produced culinary events ranging from intimate dinners to festivals drawing over 10,000 guests. From 2016 to present, af&co. has been named by the San Francisco Business Times as one of the Top 50 LGBTQ-Owned Businesses in the Bay Area, consecutively moving up the ranks to its current position at number 34.  Andrew got his start in the restaurant business by working his way up through the ranks at several legendary New York City establishments. At the Russian Tea Room, Andrew opened the Cabaret, which became the toast of the town after only six months and he spent six years as VP of PR at The Rainbow Room, working alongside Joe Baum. He then moved onto the famed Windows on the World, Andrew was the VP of Public Relations and Marketing and oversaw the re-launch after the Trade Center bombing in 1992.  Before founding af&co., Andrew spent a decade as VP of Public Relations and Strategic Partnerships at Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, launching over 40 properties and expanding the brand globally. He also spearheaded Kimpton's award-winning LGBTQ+ travel program, helping it become the first hospitality company to earn a 100% score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index—a distinction it has maintained since 2002. In addition to af&co., Andrew co-founded Carbonate in 2020, an independent branding and creative agency specializing in storytelling, identity, and positioning for the hospitality industry. Under Andrew's leadership, af&co. and Carbonate have become highly respected consulting firms with headquarters in San Francisco and Cincinnati, serving clients nationwide. The af&co. + Carbonate Annual Trends Report, now in its 17th year, continues to be one of the most influential industry resources, providing insights into emerging hospitality trends. When Andrew is not consulting with his growing list of notable clients, he dedicates any extra time he has to philanthropic efforts sitting on the boards of SF Travel, The Golden Gate Restaurant Association, Foodwise, and The Richmond Ermet AID Foundation. He's an honorary board member of Meals on Wheels San Francisco and a co-founder for Dress for Success San Francisco.  Andrew has been a driving force in initiatives that amplify and support hospitality businesses in the Bay Area. He is a co-founder of the Oakland Restaurant Collective and Savor Oakland and collaborates with Visit Oakland, Eat Drink SF, and The James Beard Foundation on yearly culinary events. He continues to advocate for hospitality businesses, ensuring they remain integral to the cultural and economic landscape. A regular contributor to industry publications, Andrew is a sought-after speaker at hospitality conferences worldwide. When not working – you can find Andrew at Barry's Bootcamp, catching the latest Broadway show (obsessed), exploring the wonders of San Francisco with his pooch Dolly and of course celebrating life's everyday moments at his favorite restaurants and hotels. Website: https://www.afandco.com/ Instagram: afandco SUBSCRIBE TO ICONIC HOUR If you enjoyed today's podcast, I'd be so appreciative if you'd take two minutes to subscribe, rate and review ICONIC HOUR. It makes a huge difference for our growth. Thanks so much!   ICONIC LIFE MAGAZINE  Stay in touch with ICONIC LIFE magazine. We invite you to join our digital VIP list and SUBSCRIBE!   JOIN OUR ICONIC COMMUNITY Website: iconiclife.com Instagram: @iconiclifemag Facebook: Iconic Life YouTube: ICONIC LIFE   FOLLOW RENEE DEE Instagram: @iconicreneedee LinkedIn: Renee Dee   Thanks for being a part of our community to Live Beautifully.

This Day in Legal History: LBJ Federalizes Alabama National GuardOn March 20, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson took a decisive step in the fight for civil rights by federalizing the Alabama National Guard to protect marchers participating in the Selma to Montgomery march. This action followed the brutal events of "Bloody Sunday" on March 7, when peaceful demonstrators advocating for Black voting rights were violently attacked by Alabama state troopers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge. A second attempt to march on March 9, known as "Turnaround Tuesday," ended without violence but still lacked sufficient protection.Johnson's decision to federalize the National Guard came after Alabama Governor George Wallace refused to ensure the safety of demonstrators, despite mounting national pressure. With federal troops in place, the march proceeded on March 21 under the protection of U.S. Army units, the FBI, and the Justice Department. Over five days, thousands of demonstrators walked the 54-mile route to Montgomery, with their numbers growing to 25,000 by the time they reached the Alabama State Capitol on March 25.This federal intervention was a turning point in the civil rights movement, demonstrating the government's willingness to enforce constitutional rights against state resistance. The Selma marches galvanized public support for voting rights and led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which outlawed discriminatory voting practices. Johnson's decision highlighted the power of federal authority to challenge systemic racism and protect fundamental freedoms.Thousands of probationary federal employees ordered reinstated by federal courts remain in limbo as the Trump administration fights lawsuits over workforce changes. Courts in Maryland and California ruled that roughly 25,000 employees must be rehired, but many are on paid leave instead of actively working. Some workers fear they may have to return their back pay if an appeals court overturns the rulings.Attorneys representing federal employees say agencies are slow to restore full duties or compensation. Ashley Ashworth, a reinstated Health and Human Services worker, said she was rehired but given no work, making her uncertain about her future. Adding to concerns, Trump's broader federal agency reorganization plans could lead to further layoffs, with probationary employees at the highest risk.Judges have pressed the administration for details on when affected employees will return, emphasizing that indefinite paid leave is not permitted. While agencies claim they are taking steps to reinstate workers, some employees have only received vague instructions about returning to duty. With legal battles ongoing, many fear their reinstatement—and pay—may be temporary.Fired Federal Workers Stuck in Limbo After Judges Order ReturnDisney shareholders are set to vote on a proposal urging the company to withdraw from the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, which ranks businesses based on LGBTQ-friendly policies. The proposal, backed by the National Center for Public Policy Research, follows similar exits by companies like Lowe's, Ford, and Harley-Davidson, which faced conservative pressure to scale back diversity initiatives.This effort aligns with broader conservative pushes, including those from the Trump administration, to dismantle corporate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. Disney, which holds a perfect score on the index, has previously faced scrutiny for its opposition to Florida's "Don't Say Gay" law.Similar shareholder proposals in the past have received little support, typically failing to reach more than 2% backing. The proposal also references backlash against brands like Bud Light and Target over LGBTQ marketing. Disney has defended its transparency in such matters and called the proposal unnecessary.Anti-DEI Disney Investors Press Vote on Abandoning LGBTQ IndexA federal judge warned the Trump administration of potential consequences if it violated his order temporarily halting the deportation of Venezuelan migrants. Judge James Boasberg expressed skepticism that revealing deportation details would compromise national security, especially after Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly shared flight information. Despite the order, three planes carrying deported Venezuelans landed in El Salvador, leading to questions about whether the administration defied the ruling.Boasberg requested details on the deportation flights, extending the administration's deadline to provide information. Trump's administration pushed back, arguing that the judge was overstepping his authority and that executive branch decisions on deportations were absolute. Meanwhile, Trump called for Boasberg's impeachment, drawing a rare rebuke from Chief Justice John Roberts, who stated that appeals—not impeachment—are the proper response to judicial disagreements.Boasberg initially blocked the deportations, ruling that the 1798 Alien Enemies Act did not justify Trump's claims that the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua's presence in the U.S. constituted an act of war. His order came after two deportation flights had already taken off. While some planes landed after the ruling, a third took off after the written order was publicly filed, raising further legal disputes. The administration defended its actions, arguing that some deportations were based on other legal grounds beyond the Alien Enemies Act.Judge warns of consequences if Trump administration violated deportation order | ReutersThe Trump administration is appealing a judge's order requiring Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency (DGE) to provide records related to their role in reshaping the federal government. The Justice Department argues that the order, which demands Musk and DGE disclose information to Democratic state officials, raises serious separation-of-powers concerns by compelling a presidential adviser and White House-affiliated entity to comply.The dispute stems from a lawsuit by 14 Democratic-led states alleging that Musk and DGE unconstitutionally exercised power by cutting federal programs, downsizing agencies, and accessing sensitive government systems. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan's ruling allows state officials to request documents and written responses but stops short of allowing depositions or direct questioning of DGE officials. Trump himself is not subject to the evidence requests.New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, leading the lawsuit, argues that DGE must provide transparency regarding its actions. The case follows other legal challenges against DGE, including a Maryland ruling that found Musk's involvement in shutting down USAID likely unconstitutional and another requiring DGE to comply with a Freedom of Information Act request. The administration may escalate the fight to the Supreme Court if the appeals court does not intervene.Trump Administration Fights Order to Turn Over DOGE Records (1) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.minimumcomp.com/subscribe

In Ep. 94, Bowyer Research’s Isaac Willour sits down with Dustin DeVito, director of corporate research at the 1792 Exchange, to discuss the Human Rights Campaign, one of the most notorious organizations pushing corporate bias on companies. Also discussed, the HRC’s Corporate Equality Index, a major pressure point for companies stepping back towards politically neutrality. Follow Dustin & the 1792 Exchange on X: @DustinDeVito @1792ExchangeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jimmy and Megan have no doubt that the gender identity of one of their three kids is unfolding differently. What they're not sure about is whether it's safe to raise their kids in the home they love. (Produced by David Hunt in Raleigh, North Carolina) And in NewsWrap: the United States Supreme Court hears a constitutional challenge to Tennessee's ban on pediatric gender-affirming healthcare, seven are arrested in raids on three queer-welcoming Moscow nightspots “to combat LGBT propaganda,” Walmart abandons its DEI policies and will no longer participate in the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, more than two dozen trans activists including whistleblower Chelsea Manning are busted in a U.S. Capitol bathroom protest at the same time as a Montana House committee gives Rep. Zoey Zephyr a pass, and more international LGBTQ+ news reported this week by Tanya Kane-Parry and Marcos Najera (produced by Brian DeShazor). All this on the December 9, 2024 edition of This Way Out! Join our family of listener-donors today at http://thiswayout.org/donate/ NOTE TO RADIO STATIONS: The weekly program uploaded to SoundCloud will soon include a pitch for This Way Out/Overnight Productions (Inc.). Stations can download a pitch-free version from radio4all.net or Pacifica's AudioPort.Org. For more information, contact Brian@ThisWayOut.org.

The rollback of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives is intensifying as President-elect Donald Trump and major corporations lead the charge. Trump has tapped conservative activist Christopher Rufo to draft a federal plan tying university funding to the removal of DEI programs, threatening billions of dollars in aid to institutions like Harvard, which received $686 million in research funds last year. Rufo, known for his controversial views on race and gender, aims to eliminate what he calls discrimination under the guise of DEI. Meanwhile, Walmart, the nation's largest private employer, has abandoned key racial equity goals, supplier diversity initiatives, and its participation in the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index. Critics argue these rollbacks undermine progress and disproportionately harm marginalized communities. Corporations and policymakers are turning their backs on equity. Advocates warn the fight for inclusion faces a pivotal moment. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's Thursday, October 10th, A.D. 2024. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 125 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com.  I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Jonathan Clark Iranian Christian released from prison 5 years early Church in Chains reports that authorities in Iran released a Christian convert from Evin Prison in Tehran last week. Mehdi Akbari had already spent nearly five years in prison out of his 10-year sentence. Thankfully, a court reduced his sentence.  Officials arrested him in 2019 on charges of “acting against national security by forming an illegal evangelical Christian group.”  Mansour Borji with Article 18, a non-profit religious liberty group, welcomed Mehdi's release. He said, “We call now for the immediate release of the other at least 20 Christians still in prison only on account of their beliefs and the peaceful outworking of these beliefs, such as Armenian citizen Hakop Gochumyan, who is also serving a ten-year sentence only because he visited some churches and was in possession of a handful of Bibles.” Irish legislature drops ambiguously worded “hate speech” bill The Irish legislature dropped “hate speech” elements from proposed legislation last month. The Incitement to Violence or Hatred and Hate Offences Bill 2022 is currently stuck in the Irish Senate. The bill originally would criminalize the possession of material considered “likely” to incite hatred with up to five years in jail. The bill did not clearly define “hate.” This left many concerned that Christians could face jail time for simply affirming a Biblical understanding of sexuality. Alliance Defending Freedom International noted, “With the world watching, the people of Ireland said ‘no' to state censorship, and it's working.” Colorado Supreme Court dismissed case again Christian baker Jack Phillips In the United States, the Colorado  Supreme Court sided with a Christian baker on Tuesday. Jack Phillips of Masterpiece Cakeshop has faced years of harassment for his biblical beliefs about marriage and sexuality.  The state's high court dismissed the latest case against him. The case started in 2017 when Phillips refused to bake a cake to celebrate someone pretending to be the opposite sex. Senior Counsel Jake Warner with Alliance Defending Freedom said, “Enough is enough. Jack has been dragged through courts for over a decade. It's time to leave him alone. Free speech is for everyone. As the U.S. Supreme Court held in 303 Creative, the government cannot force artists to express messages they don't believe.” Psalm 14:4 asks, “Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge, who eat up My people as they eat bread, and do not call on the LORD?”  Toyota ends participation in sexually deviant corporate index Toyota told its U.S. employees last Thursday that it will no longer participate in the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index. The Equality Index, run by the radical, pro-homosexual Human Rights Campaign, measures how supportive companies are of sexually perverted lifestyles. Toyota will reportedly no longer participate in events that celebrate such lifestyles. The Japanese car maker will also focus its community activities on workforce readiness and education in science, technology, engineering, and math. 10 states have abortion on the ballot Voters across 10 states will vote on ballot initiatives involving abortion this coming November. Those states are Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, and South Dakota. In most cases, the initiatives would support abortion up to birth. U.S. Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri addressed the 2024 Pray Vote Stand Summit last week on the ballot initiatives. Listen. HAWLEY: “As the people go to the polls, let's be clear, as conservatives and yes, as Republicans, that we advocate life, that we urge our fellow Americans to support life.  We will do everything we can to protect life in the law all across this country. This is absolutely foundational!” Barna: 32 million Christians unlikely to vote in presidential election Dr. George Barna  released a report on the voting practices of people of faith. The survey found that 104 million people who identify with some religion are unlikely to vote in the upcoming presidential election. Sadly, this includes 32 million self-identified Christians who attend church regularly. People said they were unlikely to vote because they weren't interested in elections, disliked the major candidates, or didn't think their vote would make a difference. William Tyndale's momentous life and death And finally, this week is the anniversary of William Tyndale's death, traditionally commemorated on October 6. Tyndale faced arrest and later death in 1536 for alleged heresy. However, he had worked tirelessly to translate the Bible into English. It was his devotion to Scripture that brought him into conflict with church and civil leaders. In response to an assertion of the supremacy of the Pope, Tyndale famously said, “I defy the Pope and all his laws; and if God spares my life, ere many years, I will cause the boy that driveth the plow to know more of the Scriptures than thou dost!” Tyndale's final words, spoken at the stake with a fervent zeal, and a loud voice, were reported later as "Lord! Open the King of England's eyes." Then, Tyndale was strangled to death  while tied at the stake, and then his dead body was burned.   Copies of Tyndale's translation were smuggled into England by the thousands. His work would form the basis of the Great Bible, edited by Miles Coverdale which made its way into every parish church just three years after Tyndale's death. Isaiah 52:7 says, “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns.'” Close And that's The Worldview on this Thursday, October 10th, in the year of our Lord 2024. Subscribe by Amazon Music or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

It's Wednesday, September 18th, A.D. 2024. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 125 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com. I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Jonathan Clark Indonesian officials release Christian apologist from jail Praise God! Indonesian officials released a Christian apologist from prison earlier this year. International Christian Concern confirmed the release last week.  Authorities arrested Gratia Pello back in 2022 for allegedly insulting Islam. Pello taught at a Christian school in East Java and published many videos defending Christianity.  A local Christian leader previously told Morning Star News, “The police always put the arrest of Christians on their priority list, but they are silent when it comes to the many . . . [Muslim teachers] who insult Christian holy books even if the case has been reported.”  Psalm 146:5 and 7 says, “Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God, … Who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry. The LORD gives freedom to the prisoners.” Country of Georgia reaffirms ban on homosexual faux marriage Lawmakers in the Eastern European country of Georgia approved legislation to protect family values yesterday. The law would allow authorities to limit the promotion of sexually perverted lifestyles in public like homosexual Pride events and their rainbow flag. The measure also reaffirms Georgia's ban on faux homosexual marriage and transgender surgeries.  Leaders with the governing Georgian Dream Party say they want to protect “traditional moral standards.” Ford, Harley-Davidson and Lowe's end perverted alliance In the U.S., big companies are dropping support for diversity initiatives.  The Human Rights Campaign, a radical pro-homosexual group, releases the Corporate Equality Index every year to determine how supportive companies are of sexually perverted lifestyles. But companies have faced pressure from customers and conservative groups for participating in the perverted index. Ford, Harley-Davidson, and Lowe's are among the latest companies to drop out of the index. Dan Lennington with the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty has supported challenges to diversity initiatives. He said, “We have no problem with nondiscrimination, but we're worried about these policies going too far and harming innocent third parties who have either religious objections or they're being excluded because they're not LGBTQ or a certain race.”  Donations by Evangelicals are down Infinity Concepts and Grey Matter Research released a new report on Evangelical giving. The study found 61% of Evangelical adults donated to a local church last year. That's down from 74% in 2021. Over the same time period, giving to a nonprofit or a ministry outside of a church fell from 58% to 50%. And the proportion of Evangelicals who did not donate at all rose from 19% to 31%. Between church and charity, the average Evangelical donor gives just 3.3% of their household income, down from 4% in 2021. In Malachi 3:10, God said, “'Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this,' says the LORD of hosts, ‘If I will not open for you the windows of Heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.'” 24% of Protestant pastors support Kamala Harris Lifeway Research released a new study on the upcoming presidential election. The report found 97% of U.S. Protestant pastors plan to vote in the election. But nearly a quarter of them did not share who they plan to vote for, up from 4% in 2020. Of the pastors who plan to vote and were willing to share their preference, 50% support former President Donald Trump. Twenty-four percent support Vice President Kamala Harris, and 23% are undecided.  Pastors voting for Trump are among the most likely to say an important issue in their voting decision is the ability to protect religious freedom, the position on abortion, and the size and role of government.  Oregon city compensates church $400,000 over homeless ministry And finally, an Oregon city agreed to pay a $400,000 settlement to a church over its homeless ministry. The City of Brookings had passed an ordinance in 2021 that restricted the homeless ministry of St. Timothy's Episcopal Church. In 2022, the church filed a lawsuit saying the ordinance violated their religious liberty. As part of the recent settlement, the city agreed to repeal the ordinance. Father Bernie Lindley of St. Timothy's said, “We had to stand up for our religious freedoms. … We're really glad that the whole thing's over with and we can get back to … getting to the needs of the marginalized in our community without the distraction of this lawsuit.” Close And that's The Worldview on this Wednesday, September 18th, in the year of our Lord 2024. Subscribe by Amazon Music or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

It's Tuesday, September 3rd, A.D. 2024. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 125 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com.  I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Kevin Swanson Nicaragua bans another 92 religious groups Daniel Ortega's government has cancelled legal recognition of another 92 religious organizations in Nicaragua. It's all part of a cancellation of 1,651 civil social organizations. That brings to a total of 5,552 organizations that have been blackballed by the Nicaraguan government. Of the most recent cancellations, most prominent are the Episcopal Church of Nicaragua, which has had a presence in the region since 1612, and the Moravian Church of Nicaragua, which was established in 1847. And, to add insult to injury, the Ortega government has announced they will be taxing churches of their monies received from tithes and offerings, at a rate of 10 to 30%, according to La Prensa.   In fact, La Prensa itself lost its facilities to the government in 2022, and 135 reporters have been in exile since then. Mexico, Syria, and Pakistan: Top 3 most dangerous for journalists The nation where it is most dangerous to work in journalism is Mexico, followed by Syria, Pakistan, Yemen, and the Congo. That's according to a recent report from Reporters Without Borders. Denmark and Norway eager to kill more babies Both Denmark and Norway are allowing for more killing of babies, by liberalizing their abortion laws this year.  They have legalized abortion to 18 weeks of pregnancy, up from 12 weeks.  However, Parliament has still to vote on the Norwegian proposal. According to a report from the Council on Foreign Relations, “Since 2020, Argentina and Thailand legalized abortions, with certain gestational limits; South Korea decriminalized abortion; and New Zealand eased its abortion restrictions. … Colombia has made abortion legal on demand up to twenty-four weeks of pregnancy, and Mexico decriminalized abortion as well.  Only Honduras, Poland, and the United States have contemplated more restrictions on abortion of late.” Psalm 46:6-7 says, “The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; He utters His voice, the Earth melts. The Lord of Hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge.” Chinese stock hit another low The Chinese Shanghai Stock Index has hit another low, representing a downward trend since May 2021. The far east markets have failed to improve any since 2006.  Vermont schools bans use of terms: “Sons and daughters” The Vermont Department of Health has issues guidelines, advising public school teachers not to use terms like “Sons and Daughters,” but to prefer gender-neutral terms like kids or children. African Methodist Episcopalians demanding reparations The African Methodist Episcopal denomination is demanding reparations for sins committed by previous generations against African immigrants. The meeting of 15,000 delegates and observers also received video greetings from President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. The denomination voted down an initiative to legitimize homosexual marriage — and remanded the matter back to committee.  God's law, as stated in Ezekiel 18:20, reminds us that, “The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.” Ford, Lowe's Tractor Supply Co, & Harley Davidson renounce DEI Big business is getting cold feet on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs. So far, Ford Motor Company, Lowe's, John Deere, Tractor Supply Co., and Harley Davidson have changed their approaches to DEI policies. More companies are backing away from participating in the pro-homosexual Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index. 68% of Evangelicals plan to vote for Trump A recent Deseret/HarrisX poll found that 51% of Christians and 68% of Evangelicals are planning on voting for Donald Trump in the upcoming election — that despite Trump's announcement he would oppose a federal abortion ban. Separately, a Washington Post-ABC-Ipsos poll found that 78% of white Evangelicals are planning to vote for Donald Trump this November.  That compares to 76% of white Evangelicals voting for Trump in the 2020 election, according to Gallup polling. The HarrisX poll found Catholics are split exactly 46% to 46% on Trump and Harris in the upcoming election.  Reagan movie beloved by moviegoers but despised by liberal critics And finally, Reagan, the new film starring Dennis Quaid as the 40th president, was released over Labor Day weekend. It nearly doubled expectations at the box office, bringing in $9.2 million in total. The film set the record for the largest disparity between an audience score and the critics score. The critics savaged the film with an average Rotten Tomatoes rating of 20%. Meanwhile, the audience scored the film at a 98% approval rating.   My kids and I saw it this past Saturday in San Antonio, Texas along with three friends. It was an inspiring and touching film.  I recommend it highly. Watch the Reagan trailer and get tickets at www.Reagan.movie.   The Boondock Saints movie, released in 2000, produced a 65% divide between critics and audience scores. And the Kendrick Brothers' movie Facing the Giants, released in 2006, produced a 69% divide between critics and audience scores. Close And that's The Worldview on this Tuesday, September 3rd, in the year of our Lord 2024. Subscribe by Amazon Music or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

[This blog will always be free to read, but it's also how I pay my bills. If you have suggestions or feedback on how I can earn your paid subscription, shoot me an email: cmclymer@gmail.com. And if this is too big of a commitment, I'm always thankful for a simple cup of coffee.]Love of mythology is central to the American experience. We'd be much less happier—or perhaps, less entertained—without it. Mythology permeates our country: George Washington axing the cherry tree, the sweet but apocryphal story of the first Thanksgiving, stacking back issues of The New Yorker near our desk with the false implication we've read any of them.Here's another one: the Pilgrims didn't first land at Plymouth Rock. In fact, the Rock itself—yes, there is a literal rock—had nothing to do with the Pilgrims. It marks a spot long claimed to be the landing area of the Mayflower, the Dutch cargo fluyt that carried the Pilgrims across the Atlantic, but the claim was originally and erroneously made by 94 year-old Thomas Flaunce more than 120 years after the landing. Flaunce, of course, was not an eyewitness to this.And the Pilgrims never mentioned the Rock. They would be very confused by the importance placed on it today and may consider us all a bit weird (actually, it's guaranteed they would consider us all weird).No, in reality, the Pilgrims first anchored in the harbor of what is now known as Provincetown, a gorgeous seaside community of less than 4,000 residents at the southern tip of Massachusetts.The other myth about the Pilgrims that was beaten into our heads from an early age is that they absconded from Europe in pursuit of true religious freedom, a core tenet of the American Experiment. But in truth, the Pilgrims were religious conservatives who wanted to be completely separate from the spiritual influence of outsiders — perhaps “aspirational purists” might be a more apt description. They weren't seeking true religious freedom for all.The area where they first anchored already had residents: the Nauset people, closely related neighbors of the better-known Wampanoag, who were almost certainly the opposite of the Pilgrims in terms of social attitudes. Although there isn't substantial scholarship on the topic, it's fairly likely that LGBTQ people were accepted on that land long before the Pilgrims arrived with their strict outlook on gender, sexuality, and family.And so, it's quite fitting that Provincetown is today considered one of the premier vacation destinations for LGBTQ families. The season reaches its celebratory apex every year with LGBTQ Family Week, organized by the organization Family Equality, this latest being its 30th year of celebration.For three decades, LGBTQ families have traveled from throughout the nation—some crossing an ocean from other countries—to enjoy what can only be described as one of the safest places in America (and the world) for the LGBTQ community.During a long, wonderful walk through town, I ran into a friend and caught up on life. She and her wife have been bringing their son ever since he was a baby. He's now 15. He's grown up surrounded by love and joy in Provincetown.Last month, Nissan (North America) reached out and asked if I would join them as a guest for the festivities. They offered to cover travel and lodging, only requesting that I write about my experience if the spirit so moved me. I was not paid, nor would I have accepted payment.My sole motivation was quite simple: while anti-LGBTQ laws are being passed in dozens of states and children are being attacked and books are being banned and fear campaigns are being waged against trans people by elected officials, I wanted to draw attention to companies who are walking the walk (or driving the drive, in this case).If you're pleasantly surprised that Nissan is so invested in LGBTQ equality, allow yourself to be further delighted. As a number of other large corporations, from Target to Tractor Supply, have quietly moved away from LGBTQ outreach in the midst of backlash from anti-LGBTQ extremists, Nissan has doubled down.For years, they've achieved high marks in the Corporate Equality Index, an annual report released by the Human Rights Campaign to assess the commitment of a wide range of companies to LGBTQ equality. And this year, they increased their sponsorship of LGBTQ Family Week, desiring to send a message that all families deserve and should expect kindness, respect, and dignity.Of course, I immediately agreed to join.There are two ways to get to Provincetown (“P-town") after landing: you can take a long drive from Boston or catch a much shorter ride on the Bay State Cruise Company ferry across Massachusetts Bay. I took the ferry, and it was lovely. It was about 90 minutes, but it felt like half an hour, I kid you not. I spent the week with the lovely group from Nissan going whale-watching, singing karaoke (enthusiastically and badly and hilariously), laughing at a drag show based on the Devil Wears Prada, eating at several of the many charming restaurants in town, and generally enjoying the festive and welcome atmosphere. And that was all great, to be sure. It was wonderful. But the parts of the trip that stick with me most were seeing hundreds of LGBTQ families gathered together in such safe and joyous celebrations. There was Family Night at Motta Field, in which many a parent could be observed cleaning sticky fingers with wet wipes and cheering on their kiddos dancing in front of the stage and toddlers walking around with watermelon wedges bigger than their heads. Everyone just seemed happy and at peace. Nissan's Don Hayes delivered brief and moving remarks during the gathering, which included this heartfelt offering that got huge applause:“You know, there was a time when I didn't feel comfortable to be myself at work, concerned for my ability to advance…but I'm happy to report, that is no longer the case.”Nissan also displayed their Ariya, an electric crossover, which I only mention here because it's truly a gorgeous piece of machinery. (Again: they are not paying me to say this. I just think it's pretty.)And, of course, there was the Parade. Oh, the Parade. If you haven't experienced the Provincetown Family Week Parade, you're missing out. I've been to countless Pride parades in my life, and there's something particularly special about this one. LGBTQ families, as far as the eye can see, who weren't so much marching as they were joyously promenading through downtown, proud parents and energetic kiddos, amused and cheering tourists on the sides, a collection of excited humanity slowly enveloping the streets. Love upon love upon love.At the Parade's end, I caught up with Alexis Cantor, who recently took the helm as President & CEO of Family Equality. I had seen Ms. Cantor around all week, always spreading good cheer and having a kind word and smile for everyone she came across.I asked her what Family Week means to her. She said:“Being surrounded by queer joy and a sense of belonging and families just feeling safe, protected, loved, and celebrated is all we can ask for… I would remind people that we need joy with our justice, and at the end of the day, families come here because they don't always feel safe. They do have worry in their hometowns, and here, they can find their community… everyone gets to show up authentically as they are… we're here to celebrate it all.”At the end of our conversation, she summed it up about as well as anyone could: “How can you not want to create a world where every single child, every single adult, every single human, gets to feel that unconditional love of family?”I couldn't agree more, and as I headed back to Boston on the ferry, I found myself immediately longing to return to P-town and feel unreservedly safe and accepted, walking its streets and simply existing as myself, beautifully and unapologetically and in communion with no shortage of kind souls.My everlasting gratitude to the folks at Nissan and Family Equality for offering a bit of heaven in a time when so many desperately need it.I only wish everyone could have that, too. Affirmation shouldn't be a mythical concept.(To donate to Family Equality and help support their amazing work, go here.)Charlotte's Web Thoughts is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Charlotte's Web Thoughts at charlotteclymer.substack.com/subscribe

This week we are joined by an anonymous guest who is a senior executive in a Fortune 100 company. This company was founded upon scientific principles.  Our guest was shocked to discover that his company supported the Equality Act, promoted by the Human Rights Campaign. As he researched, he found how harmful the Equality Act was, negatively affecting women in particular. Our guest chronicles what he has done within his corporation to encourage a discussion about their policies. We talk about the Corporate Equality Index and the immense pressure companies are under to conform for fear of having a low score.  Human Rights Campaign: https://www.hrc.org/ The Equality Act: https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/15  Sign the Feds for Freedom DEI Petition: https://conservativechange.org/petition/dei-must-die-ban-taxpayer-funding/ Watch and listen to The Feds on any of these platforms: https://taplink.cc/fedsforfreedom Support the Work and Become a Member of Feds For Freedom www.fedsforfreedom.org/join Follow Us on Social Media Instagram/X (Twitter)/Facebook:  @feds4freedomusa

In this episode, we celebrate Pride Month with our guest Dr. Renee McLaughlin, the National Medical Executive, Value-Based Relationships at Cigna. Cigna just received its 11th consecutive perfect score for LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion based on the Corporate Equality Index. Dr. McLaughlin will talk about the current environment for LGBTQ+ equity and inclusion and best practices for creating an inclusive work culture. She offers recommendations for being a stronger ally for LGBTQ+ people with a powerful model of the 3 L's: Let go, Learn, Lean In!

Many companies are aware of the importance of promoting DEIB in the workplace. It's where you implement measures to ensure your employees feel respected and are treated fairly in an inclusive environment where they can feel comfortable as themselves - and in so doing, create optimal business outcomes.However, many companies fail miserably when it comes to implementing their so-called DEIB programs. Why is that so? Let's get insights from someone who understands exactly what it takes to finesse your DEIB recipe to get the best possible outcome. Today's episode features Amelia Ransom, Smartsheet's VP of DEI. Smartsheet recently achieved 100% on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, a survey that evaluates corporate policies and practices pertaining to LGBTQ+ workplace equality - but as you'll hear, Amelia doesn't think that means their work is done.Join us as we discuss this topic of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the workplace. You'll learn the three-part framework Amelia thinks is optimal for sustained success, how we can reframe our thoughts about generational differences at work, and why Amelia has mixed feelings when it comes to the overall outlook for DEIB in the corporate realm. "Here's the challenge with DEI if we're being honest: DEI tends to experience a renaissance at the expense of life. So we tend to pay more attention to DEI when a tragedy occurs, when a war happens, when the police are violating the rights of black people, like, name it."- Amelia RansomIn This Episode:-How Amelia got into DEI-What are the current trends in DEI, and what exactly does DEI stand for?-What does it take to build a genuinely inclusive culture?-Why do most DEI initiatives neglect to include age?-Smartsheet receives accolades for hitting the mark on DEIB -Amelia shares a fantastic analogy about how people can implement DEIB the right way-What hope is there for the future of DEIB?-How does Amelia set DEI goals organizationally?-What are the red flags to watch out for when looking for work?-When people say one thing, but they mean something else And much moreResources:-Corporate DEI strategies are too focused on hiring. Here's what to do instead: https://www.fastcompany.com/90890663/corporate-dei-strategies-are-too-focused-on-hiring-heres-what-to-do-instead-Leading with Pride: Smartsheet achieves 100% on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index: https://www.smartsheet.com/content-center/inside-smartsheet/diversity-equity-inclusion/leading-with-pride?utm_source=hootsuite&utm_medium=linkedin&utm_term=&utm_content=&utm_campaign=Connect with Amelia Ransom:-LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ameliaransom/Connect with Maureen Clough:-Instagram: @itgetslateearly -

Founded in 1911, IBM has been at the center of the dynamic technology industry for decades. With more than 285,000 employees in over 175 countries, IBM maintains its position as a global leader and excels on the frontiers of hybrid cloud technology and artificial intelligence. The company's commitment to employee satisfaction has earned IBM a place on Forbes' Top 500 Best Companies for Diversity in 2023, a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, and five stars on Newsweek's 2023 list of America's Greatest Workplaces for Diversity. IBM's dedication to innovation also extends to workplace culture, diversity, and inclusivity.Kitty Chaney Reed, IBM's Chief Leadership, Culture, and Inclusion Officer, brings over 25 years of technology and business experience to the role. Chaney-Reed has consistently championed workplace diversity and inclusion, leading a global team in addressing societal issues that impact IBM employees and their communities. Her accomplishments include being an alumnus of the Distinguished Leadership Atlanta program, receiving the Georgia Diversity Council's 2015 Most Powerful and Influential Woman Award, and serving on IBM's Black Executive Council. Chaney Reed is dedicated to cultivating an inclusive environment and leveraging the strengths of a diverse workforce to create a workplace where employees can thrive.Some Questions Asked:How does a diverse workforce foster continuous innovation? How has a history of more women in meaningful roles affected IBM's culture?Will AI impact job opportunities in the future?In This Episode You Will Learn: How companies can address societal issues affecting their employees and communities.How a robust mentorship and supportive culture allows employees to connect with mentors and peers, aiding career navigation and personal growth.How AI will enable employees to upskill and engage in higher-value tasks.Links: Kitty Chaney Reed - LinkedInMichelle Labbe - LinkedInToptal - LinkedInThe Talent Economy podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

9:05 – 9:22 (17mins) Chris Cooper, Serenity Wealth Management - In-Studio 9:25 – 9:37 (12mins) Weekly: “THE BEE OR NOT THE BEE!!” with Chris Cooper  9:41 – 9:56 (15mins) NCPPR Weekly Guest: Scott Shepard- It turns out trying your best to be as woke as possible, still doesn't move you off of first base....While hundreds of companies are desperate to climb and stay, as high as possible in the HRC rankings of great companies, it seems this year, almost 300 woke companies have tumbled down the hill.....The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation's Corporate Equality Index touts itself as the national benchmarking tool on corporate policies, practices and benefits pertinent to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer employees.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Year Zero is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Leor Sapir is a scholar at the Manhattan Institute who has become a leading figure in the ongoing effort to bring accountability to a medical field that has run off the rails. In this episode of the Year Zero podcast, which was recorded in July, we discuss the fast evolving state of the legislative bans on child sex trait modification procedures and the wider project to bring an ongoing medical scandal to heel. Excerpts:Parallels between the opioid epidemic and pediatric gender medicine“There are really interesting parallels between the opioid epidemic and the gender medicine issue. In both cases, for example, it started with medical authority, citing very, very low quality studies, claiming that the use of opioids in cancer patients could be scaled at large, and that the same type of risk benefit ratio would would apply to other types of patients — patients who are not, for example, terminally ill, or even patients with a history of addictions and patterns of addictive behavior. And that, of course, turned out not to be the case. The medical associations got involved and also fueled the opioid epidemic, sometimes for good intentions, sometimes, as in the case of the American Pain Society, because they were influenced by Big pharma money. So there, I think in the case of the opioid epidemic, there was just a clear villain, and the villain was Purdue Pharma. And it was a villain that the American Left loves to hate. Big corporate interests that make money off of health care. Here, I wouldn't want to argue that there aren't kind of pharma interests involved in general medicine, of course, there are, it's a big business, and it's growing too. And we have some evidence that clinics and hospitals that do the procedures as opposed to the psychotherapy get a net benefit from them. And they also, of course, boost their scores on the Corporate Equality Index, and, you know, ESG, and all that stuff. So there's definitely a lot of institutional self interest in doing so called gender affirming care. But I wouldn't argue that the financial motives are primary here. I think that they they definitely play a role. But I would say that the ideology is by far and away the most important factor. But in any case, there are strong parallels to the opioid epidemic. And, you know, this is another example of how we don't learn our lessons.On the capture of American policymaking by the NGO Borg “The ACLU never has to face voters. It's accountable only to its own funders. And those funders are increasingly a small number of deep pocketed foundations, individuals or corporations that give money. And often these people either don't know what's going on or they are themselves highly ideological and out of tune with what what most Americans agree on. And so the first problem is that with the ACLU, there's no mechanism of accountability between these interest groups and the general public in a way that there is with political parties in the general public. The second problem is that these interest groups almost by definition, are going to get more and more extreme over time, right? Because they usually they're founded for a certain purpose, they have a strong sense of mission. And that sense of mission tends to attract people who are ideologically aligned with that mission. So if it's the ACLU — first of all civil liberties, then it was civil rights, now it's what you might call — what you have called “Successor Ideology.” If it's environmentalism, who's gonna go work at the Environmental Defense Fund, who is going to go work at at the UN — all these organizations: environmentalists, people who are very, very gung ho about environmentalism, and importantly, people who are willing to impose very costly policies on the public, because the kind of trade offs that they're willing to accept are much more extreme than the kind of trade offs that the average citizen would accept. So these groups, the ACLU, for example, will attract young, very ideological, very woke lawyers — people like Chase Strangio to its ranks and promote them. And so gradually, over time, these groups tend to become more and more extreme in their positions. And because of the way in which the American political system gives them so much power and so much leverage over the policy process, we end up with the politics of radical policymaking. So it's not that other countries don't have similar problems. But here in the United States, because of how our system of government works, these problems tend to be much more extreme and much more intractable.”Thank you for reading Year Zero. This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wesleyyang.substack.com/subscribe

New from the Colson Center!  Interested in the What Would You Say? video project? Subscribe to be notified when new videos are released at whatwouldyousay.org/subscribe. Watch the latest release and explore the full on-demand library! __   In 1792, a group of New York bankers gathered by a famous tree on Wall Street and signed the landmark “Buttonwood Agreement.” Against a backdrop of speculation and deceit, the document signaled a return to openness, fair dealing, and integrity among New York's financial sector. Eventually, the Buttonwood Agreement became the basis for the New York Stock Exchange.   Today, corporate America faces a different crisis of values. Spurred on by the push for so-called “environmental, social, and governance principles” (ESG) a decade ago, a huge percentage of top corporations are now committed to an increasingly radical progressive agenda. This agenda is forced on employees and customers and anyone whom these corporations do business with, from vendors to HR firms to investment portfolios to every small business along the supply chain. The “Pride Month” fiascos of Bud Light and Target exemplify just how allegiant some corporations are to this agenda, completely misunderstanding their consumer base.  Recently, I spoke with Paul Fitzpatrick, president of the 1792 Exchange. Their vision is to steer public companies back toward a commonsense vision of the workplace. In our conversation, which airs as a special bonus episode of the Breakpoint podcast, Paul and I discussed how ideas long entrenched in the university and in the arts reached corporate America and have disenfranchised people of faith and moral conviction.  Corporations impact what we see, how we entertain ourselves, how we feed ourselves, how we clothe ourselves, and how we fund our businesses. And so, they  can either put gas on the fire of something good or put gas on the fire of something bad.   Part of the issue, Paul explains, is how progressive groups targeted corporations after the financial crisis of 2008-09.   Remember how unpopular they were after the '08-'09 crisis? And taxpayers bailed them out, and everybody on the right and the left were mad at corporations. … So, here they are, Wall Street is very unpopular … and they're looking for a way to cozy up and get basically the Occupy Wall Street folks and Congress off their backs, and to some extent conservatives. But at the same time, the left is looking for a way to leverage corporations. You had said they already captured academia. We already talked about the media. But they were moving to capture corporate America.   Activists pushed corporations to get on the so-called “right side” of certain social issues.   You've got the Human Rights Campaign coming in saying, hey, you know, you got 100% last year. We want you to get 100% this year. So, what you need to do is … have a DEI curriculum—diversity, equity, and inclusion training for all your employees, whether you have 100 or 100,000 employees.  In the end, freedom of expression has been stifled in the workplace. Even small businesses face enormous pressure to comply with the demands of a few powerful entities.   If you have a business and you are a supplier to a major company that has signed on to the progressive agenda and all those areas we discussed, they could demand that you have certain hiring practices, which many do if you're going to get a 100% score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, which 842 companies did by the way recently, you have to mandate in your supply chain that the LGBTQ agenda and hiring is adhered to. As far as internal corporations, there's no question we've seen examples of employees being fired for taking political or ideological positions outside of work.    The 1792 Exchange is working to shift the conversation by educating consumers and stockholders, supporting private businesses and business leaders, and exposing the coercive tactics of these few powerful groups. Their Corporate Bias Ratings tool reviews over 1,500 different companies, scoring them on how well they respect viewpoint diversity. Learn more about their work at 1792exchange.com, and listen to a special Breakpoint bonus episode with Paul Fitzpatrick at breakpoint.org or wherever you listen to podcasts.   Safeguarding and advancing freedom of conscience in the workplace benefits everyone.   This Breakpoint was co-authored by Kasey Leander. For more resources to live like a Christian in this cultural moment, go to breakpoint.org.   

The Christian Outlook – July 1, 2023 Georgene Rice talks with Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, about the one-year anniversary of the overturning of Roe, and how the pro-life movement remains hopeful, driven by truth and the unity of a new generation. Albert Mohler highlights how the pro-life movement still faces a significant challenge as the focus now shifts to defending and extending protections for the unborn. Don Kroah interviews Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel, about state actions to protect minors from gender ideology, including bills giving parental control, protecting women's sports, and banning gender-affirming healthcare for minors. Jerry Bowyer, host of Meeting of Minds, and Jeremy Tedesco, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, discuss how indices like the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index push companies to meet ever-increasing demands of left-wing ideologies, regardless of the impact on business. They argue that this approach undermines genuine diversity and inclusivity by prioritizing compliance over respect for diverse beliefs. Georgene Rice commends Jeff Peabody, author of "Perfectly Suited: The Armor of God for the Anxious Mind," for sharing his personal struggle with anxiety and highlighting that being a Christian doesn't exempt one from such struggles, but provides protection and grace to navigate through them.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

June is Pride Month in the United States and other countries around the world. It's a time to honor the contributions of people who are LGBTQ+, celebrate the progress the community has made over the years, and recognize the challenges that still remain. One of the areas that still requires attention is in the workplace, where employers often offer a patchwork quilt of inclusivity benefits. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has been paying attention to this area for decades, shining a light on the topic through its Corporate Equality Index. RaShawn "Shawnie" Hawkins is the senior director of HRC's Workplace Equality Program. She's joining us this week to explain how people who are LGBTQ can use the Index to find inclusive employers and how current employers can advocate for good policy updates Follow Shawnie on LinkedIn by clicking here. You can find the latest Corporate Equality Index by clicking here. Follow Andrew on LinkedIn to join the Get Hired community by clicking here.

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The New Discourses Podcast with James Lindsay, Episode 119 ESG scoring is a financial racket, and we're starting to learn how it works. The unfolding saga with huge American corporations like Anheuser-Busch (Bud Light) and Target are showing us a glimpse of what's going on behind the curtain with this cartel scam that's trapping our corporations. One tool of this cartel is the Human Rights Campaign's "Corporate Equality Index," which is concerned with "LGBTQ+" issues and is used as a scoring mechanism for the S, Social (Justice), part of ESG scoring. In this episode of the New Discourses Podcast, host James Lindsay walks through how the ESG racket works, including using CEI scoring, and makes the suggestion that we need a perspective shift so we can end this problem once and for all. Join him to hear how it works! Get James Lindsay's new book, The Marxification of Education: https://amzn.to/3RYZ0tY Support New Discourses: https://newdiscourses.com/support Follow New Discourses on other platforms: https://newdiscourses.com/subscribe Follow James Lindsay: https://linktr.ee/conceptualjames © 2023 New Discourses. All rights reserved. #NewDiscourses #JamesLindsay #esg

Woke culture has blanketed the world. Companies are getting behind it as corporate policy. Schools are parading it in front of children. Governments are standing behind it and protecting it through law. But is it something actually embraced by the average person, or is it an agenda being manipulated to appear more popular than it actually is? Going by the boycotts now sweeping the country, it appears it's the latter. And public awareness is now going beyond the surface narratives, to see the real motives behind the woke push. This is where CEI comes into play—the “Corporate Equality Index.” There are similar scores, such as ESG, or “environmental and social governance,” and also DEI, or “diversity, equity, and inclusion.” In this episode of Crossroads, we'll discuss the agenda behind the woke movement. ⭕️ Stay up-to-date with Josh with the Crossroads NEWSLETTER

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This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Tuesday, May 23rd, 2023. Concordis Education Partners: Classical Christian education has reminded us to aim education at truth, but the trivium has been used as a formula rather than a way of training students in discernment. To teach well, you must coach. Concordis Foundation is offering their third annual BOOT CAMP – a faculty summit – July 11-13th in Moscow, Idaho. This is a three-day intensive teaching training where you learn to coach students, using the trivium, so that you can meet students at all learning levels. Learn more at concordispartners.com https://www.westernjournal.com/two-women-told-broken-law-criticizing-male-attempting-breastfeed-child-report/ Two Women Are Told They've Broken the Law by Criticizing Male Attempting to Breastfeed a Child: Report Two Australian women were reportedly given notices informing them that they committed a crime by criticizing a male, who identifies as a woman, that was trying to breastfeed a baby. The news was first reported by the “Pro-Woman, Pro-Child Safeguarding, Anti-Bullsh*t,” media outlet Reduxx. According to the outlet, Twitter contacted the two women — Jasmine Sussex and Leah Whiston — on May 16, notifying them that they had violated Australian law in several of their tweets. The platform told the two that a “government entity or law enforcement agency” had informed them of their alleged crime, and that the platform had been forced to hide the content from Australian users. The posts in question had been critical of Jennifer Buckley, a female-identified male. Buckley had previously announced online that, after two years of transitioning, he had induced lactation and had begun breastfeeding his newborn son, who his wife had given birth to. Sussex was heavily critical of this, telling the U.K.’s Daily Mail that “men shouldn’t breastfeed because breastfeeding [is] for the baby,” and that “there is no evidence that any male-induced milk is equivalent to mother’s milk.” “We have no idea if the substance is even milk. It’s absolutely a human experiment on babies,” she told the outlet. As a volunteer breastfeeding counselor, Sussex was reportedly fired from her job in 2021 for failing to comply with the adoption of “gender neutral” language in breastfeeding care — a claim which the ABA denied to the Daily Mail. A year after, she was removed from the Australian Breastfeeding Association (ABA), Reduxx reported. “I was sacked for. … ‘Engaging in Sectarian Controversy’ in breach of the ABA constitution,” she told Reduxx. “In other words, continuing to talk about the dangers of gender identity ideology for mothers and babies, including how men were forcing their way into the breastfeeding relationship by attempting to induce lactation.” Whiston, meanwhile, is the representative for the Standing for Women Queensland (SFWQ) page. She had posted a Twitter thread on the page, revealing that an LGBT lobby group had allegedly given the ABA $20,000 for them to create an educational booklet about “chest feeding.” https://www.dailysignal.com/2023/05/22/exclusive-leaked-policy-exposes-fox-news-stances-on-woke-ideology/?fbclid=IwAR36KJiUko85jY6nRrQSX4DH2XOZAwUdyaTl-iEhQIfZe9w-ZPnsTY3cAnA Leaked Policy Exposes Fox News Stances on Woke Ideology Fox News employees are allowed to use bathrooms that align with their gender identity, rather than their biological sex, and permitted to dress in alignment with their preferred gender. They must also be addressed by their preferred name and pronouns in the workplace. These are just a few of the policies outlined in the company handbook, dated January 2021, a copy of which was shared with The Daily Signal. Fox also offers to help employees come up with a “Workplace Transition Plan” to ease their gender transition at work. The revelations comes amid conservative consternation at Fox Digital’s use of activist language like “gender affirming care” in stories on its website, as well as the site’s consistent use of female pronouns for biological males like TikTok celebrity Dylan Mulvaney and swimmer Lia Thomas (formerly known as Will Thomas). Fox also drew strong backlash for a June 2022 on-air segment praising a child’s gender transition as an “inspiration to others.” That segment briefly depicted California state Sen. Scott Weiner, a far-left Democrat who led the move to soften sex offender registry requirements for sodomy with minors, and highlighted the activist claim that a child might commit suicide if he or she is not permitted to transition. Carlson’s show was canceled April 24, days after he delivered a viral speech at The Heritage Foundation’s 50th anniversary gala. Fox News Media has not given a reason, simply stating that the two parties “agreed to part ways.” A source who still works at Fox News told The Daily Signal that after Carlson’s show was canceled in April, producers for the new 8 p.m. “Fox News Tonight” program were told not to bash Mulvaney. That directive came from high-level executives, the source said. Fox News did not respond to The Daily Signal’s multiple requests for comment. Under the category “Gender Transition,” Fox’s employee handbook promises that the company is dedicated to “expanding and strengthening” efforts to “sustain a more inclusive work environment.” The Fox employee handbook is posted on Workday, where employees can see company guidelines or policies, a former employee told The Daily Signal. “Employees who are transitioning their gender have the right to be open about their transition if they so choose, and to work in an environment free of harassment, discrimination, or retaliation, and without fear of consequences or transphobia for living openly,” the policy says. Citing the Human Rights Campaign, one of the most prominent LGBTQ organization in the country, the Fox handbook defines a slew of LGBTQ terms, including cisgender, gender expression, gender-fluid, gender identity, gender non-conforming, gender transition, LGBTQ, non-binary, and transgender. For the past several years, Fox received a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, “the nation’s foremost benchmarking survey and report measuring corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ+ workplace equality.” A former Fox News employee told The Daily Signal that the company frequently mentions this perfect score in employee training materials. “Fox News devotes hours of programming to attacking ‘woke companies,’ but ironically Fox is as woke as the rest of them,” another former Fox News employee told The Daily Signal, emphasizing that Fox viewers would be “astonished to find out what the company is like.” Fox’s policies appear to be aligned with the legal requirements in New York City, where the company is headquartered, as well as California, where a large number of its employees work. The handbook explicitly states that any employee “may access the restroom corresponding to their gender identity.” “If a transitioning employee expresses a desire for increased privacy they will be provided access to a single occupancy restroom where available,” the handbook says. “However, no employee shall be required to use a single occupancy restroom if they do not wish to do so.” When trans-identifying TikTok star Mulvaney was first gaining prominence last year, producers for “Tucker Carlson Tonight” had to fight to be able to refer to Mulvaney with male pronouns in the show’s chyrons, the former “Tucker Carlson Tonight” producer told The Daily Signal. Carlson’s team also fought to be able to host The Daily Wire’s Matt Walsh on trans issues, the producer said, but the team was repeatedly met with resistance from Fox on this due to Walsh’s frank condemnation of transgender ideology. This may have also been due in part to Fox’s view of The Daily Wire as a competitor, the former producer suggested. https://www.based-politics.com/2023/05/22/this-public-college-is-giving-out-paid-internships-that-openly-exclude-white-people/ This public college is giving out paid internships that openly exclude white people Martin Luther King Jr. famously dreamed of a day when Americans would be judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. Well, keep dreaming, MLK, because segregation and open race discrimination are making a comeback—this time, in progressive bastions like our higher education system and in the name of “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.” The University of Minnesota just got hit with a federal civil rights complaint because it’s openly conditioning a paid internship program on the basis of race. Their “Multicultural Summer Research Opportunities Program” is “an intensive 10 week summer program in which undergraduate students of color work full-time with a faculty mentor on a research project.” It aims to help in “preparing students for graduate school and developing research skills,” and pays students a $6,000 stipend. A condition of the program is that it is only open to students who “identify” as “a student of color or Native American.” This program’s legality is being challenged by the Legal Insurrection Foundation’s Equal Protection Project (EPP), which “seeks to ensure equal protection under the law and non-discrimination by the government” and “opposes racial discrimination in any form.” They just filed a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education arguing that this internship program violates the Civil Rights Act and the Equal Protection clause of the Constitution. “The U. Minnesota segregated summer program is inexcusable, and it’s shocking that a major university would so openly make educational opportunities open only to students of a certain skin color,” EPP President Bill told Fox News Digital. “There is no good form of racial discrimination. Depriving white students of educational opportunities does not promote racial or any other form of justice.” https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2023/05/21/census-new-york-city-loses-nearly-half-a-million-residents-in-two-years/ New York City Loses Nearly Half a Million Residents in Two Years New York City has lost nearly half a million residents over the course of just two years, newly released United States Census Bureau data reveals. The Census Bureau data, which shows population estimates for mid-2022, finds that fewer than 8.4 million residents remain living in New York City — still making the Big Apple the nation’s most populous city by several million. In April 2020, the very start of the Chinese coronavirus pandemic, more than 8.8 million residents lived in New York City. This figure indicates a population loss of more than five percent from April 2020 to July 2022 with almost half a million residents leaving the city. Americans moving out of deep blue cities is widespread, the Census Bureau data shows. The second largest city, Los Angeles, California, and the third largest city, Chicago, Illinois, also lost residents over the course of two years. In Los Angeles, for instance, about 3.8 million residents remain in the city as of July 2022 compared to about 3.9 million residents in April 2020, a loss of about 100,000 residents. Similarly, Chicago had about 2.67 million residents as of July 2022 but in April 2020, the city had about three percent more residents. Over the two years, about 85,000 residents left Chicago. And now for the rundown… https://andmagazine.substack.com/p/china-is-building-killer-robots-using Many of us have seen The Terminator, a 1984 film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. It depicts an almost unstoppable robot sent back in time from 2029 to 1984. Its mission was to kill a woman whose unborn son will save humanity from Skynet, a 2029 artificial intelligence system that had become self-aware and then decided to destroy all of mankind because humans were interfering in their plans and programs. The Chinese Communist Party, the CCP, is now creating their version of the Terminator -- an army of battlefield killer robots that will not be managed by humans in any way and, instead, will be controlled by an artificial intelligence (AI) system. The Chinese plan for building such lethal autonomous robots was revealed by Zeng Yi, an executive in a Chinese government-owned company named Norinco. He said, “In future battlegrounds, there will be no people fighting,” adding that autonomous AI platforms are “inevitable.” https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/washington-secrets/explosion-of-ap-climate-change-stories-following-8m-enviro-grant In the year following a grant of more than $8 million to the Associated Press from key climate change advocates, the news service has poured out at least 64 stories warning of environmental calamity, according to a new media study.Media Research Center Business charted the stories and language used following the multimillion-dollar grant and found that AP also used over 500 environmental extremism buzzwords in the stories. The media giant, which feeds news outlets worldwide, received grants totaling $8 million from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Quadrivium, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the Walton Family Foundation in February 2022. AP said it would hire 20 new environmental writers with the money to create a climate swat team to “enhance the global understanding of climate change and its impact across the world.” https://www.outkick.com/trans-high-school-track-runner-robs-female-athlete-of-state-championship-bid/ Another day, another biological male taking opportunities from deserving females.Athena Ryan took second place Saturday in the high school women’s 1600 meter race at the North Coast Meet of Champions in California. The top three athletes advance to the CIF State Track & Field Championships next week. So the fourth-place finisher, Adeline Johnson, missed her chance to compete in State by just one spot. A spot taken by a boy. Ryan, a junior at Sonoma Academy, competed on the men’s team in 2021. But he’s been running in women’s events for the past two seasons. In Saturday’s meet, he clocked a season-record 4:55:91 in the 1600m finals. He would have finished last in the male category. The slowest male time in the preliminaries was 4:46:54. The slowest male time in the finals was 4:35:12. A group of advocates held a banner at the event that simply read, “Protect Female Sports.” They were eventually asked to leave and then escorted off the premises. But not before they had an interesting exchange with an angry passerby. How about we end with some cool news… https://www.dailyfetched.com/soldier-who-lost-both-legs-in-afghanistan-does-the-unimaginable-and-climbs-everest-anything-is-possible/ British army soldier Gurkha veteran Hari Budha Magar, who lost both his legs while serving in Afghanistan, has successfully climbed to the top of the world’s tallest mountain, Mount Everest. Magar, a father of three, served as a corporal in the Gurkha regiment in the British Army. After Magar lost his legs to an improvised explosive device in 2010, he thought his life was “completely finished.” The veteran, who now lives in Canterbury, England, battled depression and alcoholism following the explosion. But Magar persevered. The veteran helped strike down a ban on both double amputees and blind people climbing Everest, ensuring he would have a chance at overcoming both nature and his injuries. According to the BBC, Magar hoped to “inspire others” and “change perceptions on disability” and set off with a team of Nepalese climbers to combat Everest. He” set off on May 6 with a team of Nepalese climbers led by Krish Thapa, a fellow Gurkha veteran and British special forces mountain troop leader. Magar announced he “stood victorious” atop Everest around 3 p.m. on May 19, noting, “Disability is no barrier to reaching the 8,849-metre peak.”

This is Garrison Hardie with your CrossPolitic Daily News Brief for Tuesday, May 23rd, 2023. Concordis Education Partners: Classical Christian education has reminded us to aim education at truth, but the trivium has been used as a formula rather than a way of training students in discernment. To teach well, you must coach. Concordis Foundation is offering their third annual BOOT CAMP – a faculty summit – July 11-13th in Moscow, Idaho. This is a three-day intensive teaching training where you learn to coach students, using the trivium, so that you can meet students at all learning levels. Learn more at concordispartners.com https://www.westernjournal.com/two-women-told-broken-law-criticizing-male-attempting-breastfeed-child-report/ Two Women Are Told They've Broken the Law by Criticizing Male Attempting to Breastfeed a Child: Report Two Australian women were reportedly given notices informing them that they committed a crime by criticizing a male, who identifies as a woman, that was trying to breastfeed a baby. The news was first reported by the “Pro-Woman, Pro-Child Safeguarding, Anti-Bullsh*t,” media outlet Reduxx. According to the outlet, Twitter contacted the two women — Jasmine Sussex and Leah Whiston — on May 16, notifying them that they had violated Australian law in several of their tweets. The platform told the two that a “government entity or law enforcement agency” had informed them of their alleged crime, and that the platform had been forced to hide the content from Australian users. The posts in question had been critical of Jennifer Buckley, a female-identified male. Buckley had previously announced online that, after two years of transitioning, he had induced lactation and had begun breastfeeding his newborn son, who his wife had given birth to. Sussex was heavily critical of this, telling the U.K.’s Daily Mail that “men shouldn’t breastfeed because breastfeeding [is] for the baby,” and that “there is no evidence that any male-induced milk is equivalent to mother’s milk.” “We have no idea if the substance is even milk. It’s absolutely a human experiment on babies,” she told the outlet. As a volunteer breastfeeding counselor, Sussex was reportedly fired from her job in 2021 for failing to comply with the adoption of “gender neutral” language in breastfeeding care — a claim which the ABA denied to the Daily Mail. A year after, she was removed from the Australian Breastfeeding Association (ABA), Reduxx reported. “I was sacked for. … ‘Engaging in Sectarian Controversy’ in breach of the ABA constitution,” she told Reduxx. “In other words, continuing to talk about the dangers of gender identity ideology for mothers and babies, including how men were forcing their way into the breastfeeding relationship by attempting to induce lactation.” Whiston, meanwhile, is the representative for the Standing for Women Queensland (SFWQ) page. She had posted a Twitter thread on the page, revealing that an LGBT lobby group had allegedly given the ABA $20,000 for them to create an educational booklet about “chest feeding.” https://www.dailysignal.com/2023/05/22/exclusive-leaked-policy-exposes-fox-news-stances-on-woke-ideology/?fbclid=IwAR36KJiUko85jY6nRrQSX4DH2XOZAwUdyaTl-iEhQIfZe9w-ZPnsTY3cAnA Leaked Policy Exposes Fox News Stances on Woke Ideology Fox News employees are allowed to use bathrooms that align with their gender identity, rather than their biological sex, and permitted to dress in alignment with their preferred gender. They must also be addressed by their preferred name and pronouns in the workplace. These are just a few of the policies outlined in the company handbook, dated January 2021, a copy of which was shared with The Daily Signal. Fox also offers to help employees come up with a “Workplace Transition Plan” to ease their gender transition at work. The revelations comes amid conservative consternation at Fox Digital’s use of activist language like “gender affirming care” in stories on its website, as well as the site’s consistent use of female pronouns for biological males like TikTok celebrity Dylan Mulvaney and swimmer Lia Thomas (formerly known as Will Thomas). Fox also drew strong backlash for a June 2022 on-air segment praising a child’s gender transition as an “inspiration to others.” That segment briefly depicted California state Sen. Scott Weiner, a far-left Democrat who led the move to soften sex offender registry requirements for sodomy with minors, and highlighted the activist claim that a child might commit suicide if he or she is not permitted to transition. Carlson’s show was canceled April 24, days after he delivered a viral speech at The Heritage Foundation’s 50th anniversary gala. Fox News Media has not given a reason, simply stating that the two parties “agreed to part ways.” A source who still works at Fox News told The Daily Signal that after Carlson’s show was canceled in April, producers for the new 8 p.m. “Fox News Tonight” program were told not to bash Mulvaney. That directive came from high-level executives, the source said. Fox News did not respond to The Daily Signal’s multiple requests for comment. Under the category “Gender Transition,” Fox’s employee handbook promises that the company is dedicated to “expanding and strengthening” efforts to “sustain a more inclusive work environment.” The Fox employee handbook is posted on Workday, where employees can see company guidelines or policies, a former employee told The Daily Signal. “Employees who are transitioning their gender have the right to be open about their transition if they so choose, and to work in an environment free of harassment, discrimination, or retaliation, and without fear of consequences or transphobia for living openly,” the policy says. Citing the Human Rights Campaign, one of the most prominent LGBTQ organization in the country, the Fox handbook defines a slew of LGBTQ terms, including cisgender, gender expression, gender-fluid, gender identity, gender non-conforming, gender transition, LGBTQ, non-binary, and transgender. For the past several years, Fox received a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, “the nation’s foremost benchmarking survey and report measuring corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ+ workplace equality.” A former Fox News employee told The Daily Signal that the company frequently mentions this perfect score in employee training materials. “Fox News devotes hours of programming to attacking ‘woke companies,’ but ironically Fox is as woke as the rest of them,” another former Fox News employee told The Daily Signal, emphasizing that Fox viewers would be “astonished to find out what the company is like.” Fox’s policies appear to be aligned with the legal requirements in New York City, where the company is headquartered, as well as California, where a large number of its employees work. The handbook explicitly states that any employee “may access the restroom corresponding to their gender identity.” “If a transitioning employee expresses a desire for increased privacy they will be provided access to a single occupancy restroom where available,” the handbook says. “However, no employee shall be required to use a single occupancy restroom if they do not wish to do so.” When trans-identifying TikTok star Mulvaney was first gaining prominence last year, producers for “Tucker Carlson Tonight” had to fight to be able to refer to Mulvaney with male pronouns in the show’s chyrons, the former “Tucker Carlson Tonight” producer told The Daily Signal. Carlson’s team also fought to be able to host The Daily Wire’s Matt Walsh on trans issues, the producer said, but the team was repeatedly met with resistance from Fox on this due to Walsh’s frank condemnation of transgender ideology. This may have also been due in part to Fox’s view of The Daily Wire as a competitor, the former producer suggested. https://www.based-politics.com/2023/05/22/this-public-college-is-giving-out-paid-internships-that-openly-exclude-white-people/ This public college is giving out paid internships that openly exclude white people Martin Luther King Jr. famously dreamed of a day when Americans would be judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. Well, keep dreaming, MLK, because segregation and open race discrimination are making a comeback—this time, in progressive bastions like our higher education system and in the name of “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.” The University of Minnesota just got hit with a federal civil rights complaint because it’s openly conditioning a paid internship program on the basis of race. Their “Multicultural Summer Research Opportunities Program” is “an intensive 10 week summer program in which undergraduate students of color work full-time with a faculty mentor on a research project.” It aims to help in “preparing students for graduate school and developing research skills,” and pays students a $6,000 stipend. A condition of the program is that it is only open to students who “identify” as “a student of color or Native American.” This program’s legality is being challenged by the Legal Insurrection Foundation’s Equal Protection Project (EPP), which “seeks to ensure equal protection under the law and non-discrimination by the government” and “opposes racial discrimination in any form.” They just filed a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education arguing that this internship program violates the Civil Rights Act and the Equal Protection clause of the Constitution. “The U. Minnesota segregated summer program is inexcusable, and it’s shocking that a major university would so openly make educational opportunities open only to students of a certain skin color,” EPP President Bill told Fox News Digital. “There is no good form of racial discrimination. Depriving white students of educational opportunities does not promote racial or any other form of justice.” https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2023/05/21/census-new-york-city-loses-nearly-half-a-million-residents-in-two-years/ New York City Loses Nearly Half a Million Residents in Two Years New York City has lost nearly half a million residents over the course of just two years, newly released United States Census Bureau data reveals. The Census Bureau data, which shows population estimates for mid-2022, finds that fewer than 8.4 million residents remain living in New York City — still making the Big Apple the nation’s most populous city by several million. In April 2020, the very start of the Chinese coronavirus pandemic, more than 8.8 million residents lived in New York City. This figure indicates a population loss of more than five percent from April 2020 to July 2022 with almost half a million residents leaving the city. Americans moving out of deep blue cities is widespread, the Census Bureau data shows. The second largest city, Los Angeles, California, and the third largest city, Chicago, Illinois, also lost residents over the course of two years. In Los Angeles, for instance, about 3.8 million residents remain in the city as of July 2022 compared to about 3.9 million residents in April 2020, a loss of about 100,000 residents. Similarly, Chicago had about 2.67 million residents as of July 2022 but in April 2020, the city had about three percent more residents. Over the two years, about 85,000 residents left Chicago. And now for the rundown… https://andmagazine.substack.com/p/china-is-building-killer-robots-using Many of us have seen The Terminator, a 1984 film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. It depicts an almost unstoppable robot sent back in time from 2029 to 1984. Its mission was to kill a woman whose unborn son will save humanity from Skynet, a 2029 artificial intelligence system that had become self-aware and then decided to destroy all of mankind because humans were interfering in their plans and programs. The Chinese Communist Party, the CCP, is now creating their version of the Terminator -- an army of battlefield killer robots that will not be managed by humans in any way and, instead, will be controlled by an artificial intelligence (AI) system. The Chinese plan for building such lethal autonomous robots was revealed by Zeng Yi, an executive in a Chinese government-owned company named Norinco. He said, “In future battlegrounds, there will be no people fighting,” adding that autonomous AI platforms are “inevitable.” https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/washington-secrets/explosion-of-ap-climate-change-stories-following-8m-enviro-grant In the year following a grant of more than $8 million to the Associated Press from key climate change advocates, the news service has poured out at least 64 stories warning of environmental calamity, according to a new media study.Media Research Center Business charted the stories and language used following the multimillion-dollar grant and found that AP also used over 500 environmental extremism buzzwords in the stories. The media giant, which feeds news outlets worldwide, received grants totaling $8 million from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Quadrivium, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the Walton Family Foundation in February 2022. AP said it would hire 20 new environmental writers with the money to create a climate swat team to “enhance the global understanding of climate change and its impact across the world.” https://www.outkick.com/trans-high-school-track-runner-robs-female-athlete-of-state-championship-bid/ Another day, another biological male taking opportunities from deserving females.Athena Ryan took second place Saturday in the high school women’s 1600 meter race at the North Coast Meet of Champions in California. The top three athletes advance to the CIF State Track & Field Championships next week. So the fourth-place finisher, Adeline Johnson, missed her chance to compete in State by just one spot. A spot taken by a boy. Ryan, a junior at Sonoma Academy, competed on the men’s team in 2021. But he’s been running in women’s events for the past two seasons. In Saturday’s meet, he clocked a season-record 4:55:91 in the 1600m finals. He would have finished last in the male category. The slowest male time in the preliminaries was 4:46:54. The slowest male time in the finals was 4:35:12. A group of advocates held a banner at the event that simply read, “Protect Female Sports.” They were eventually asked to leave and then escorted off the premises. But not before they had an interesting exchange with an angry passerby. How about we end with some cool news… https://www.dailyfetched.com/soldier-who-lost-both-legs-in-afghanistan-does-the-unimaginable-and-climbs-everest-anything-is-possible/ British army soldier Gurkha veteran Hari Budha Magar, who lost both his legs while serving in Afghanistan, has successfully climbed to the top of the world’s tallest mountain, Mount Everest. Magar, a father of three, served as a corporal in the Gurkha regiment in the British Army. After Magar lost his legs to an improvised explosive device in 2010, he thought his life was “completely finished.” The veteran, who now lives in Canterbury, England, battled depression and alcoholism following the explosion. But Magar persevered. The veteran helped strike down a ban on both double amputees and blind people climbing Everest, ensuring he would have a chance at overcoming both nature and his injuries. According to the BBC, Magar hoped to “inspire others” and “change perceptions on disability” and set off with a team of Nepalese climbers to combat Everest. He” set off on May 6 with a team of Nepalese climbers led by Krish Thapa, a fellow Gurkha veteran and British special forces mountain troop leader. Magar announced he “stood victorious” atop Everest around 3 p.m. on May 19, noting, “Disability is no barrier to reaching the 8,849-metre peak.”

Today we're talking about the one-year anniversary of our Target boycott. Last year, Target announced it would start selling chest binders amid its "Pride Month" collection, which was a step too far. We look back at Target's decision and how dangerous and damaging it is to encourage gender confusion in this popular brand for young people. We look at Target's Corporate Equality Index rating and why the corporation cares more about being progressive than about pleasing its customers. This seems to be reflected in its stock downfall over the past year, though some have presented inflation as the reason for that. Then, we take a look at this year's Target Pride collection, which includes items for ... babies?! We discuss how this ideology is not loving in any way, but rather just a cruel affirmation that people are a mistake, and we share what message would actually be loving to these people. We also share an encouraging Mother's Day message for those who are not mothers, no matter the reason: Your highest calling according to Jesus is not in fact motherhood, but being obedient and glorifying to Christ, and that calling starts now. --- Timecodes: (00:47) Intro / trip to California (04:44) Mother's Day (15:43) Target boycott & effects of gender confusion (24:30) Boycotts (27:15) Other items from Target's 2022 Pride (30:17) Target's revenue & stock downfall (34:58) Pride baby books (38:26) Target 2023 Pride (49:50) New boycott --- Today's Sponsors: Carly Jean Los Angeles — use promo code 'ALLIEBASICS' to save 25% off your first order at CarlyJeanLosAngeles.com! Reliefband — save 20% off plus free shipping at Reliefband.com when you use promo code 'ALLIE'! Birch Gold — protect your future with gold. Text 'ALLIE' to 989898 for a free, zero obligation info kit on diversifying and protecting your savings with gold. Patriot Mobile — go to PatriotMobile.com/ALLIE or call 878-PATRIOT and use promo code 'ALLIE' to get free activation! --- Links: Bustle: "Target Dropped *Two* New Fashion Collabs With Queer-Owned Brands" https://www.bustle.com/style/target-tomboyx-humankind-pride-collab --- Relevant Episodes: Ep 614 | Bye Bye, Target. You Crossed the Line https://apple.co/42VJXqP Ep 667 | After Hormones & Surgery, She Found Christ | Guest: Sophia Galvin https://apple.co/3W8Tglg Ep 791 | The U.N.'s Push to Decriminalize Child Rape | Guest: James Lindsay https://apple.co/3nVJshP --- Buy Allie's book, You're Not Enough (& That's Okay): Escaping the Toxic Culture of Self-Love: https://alliebethstuckey.com/book Relatable merchandise – use promo code 'MOM10' for a discount: https://shop.blazemedia.com/collections/allie-stuckey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join host Vivek Ramaswamy and guest James Lindsay as they delve into the complex and paradoxical world of modern inclusivity movements. Discover how the synthetic value of inclusivity has led to a culture of exclusion, drawing parallels to totalitarian regimes and Mao's blueprint. Unravel the ESG cartel's manipulation of the corporate world and its far-reaching consequences on national security. Examine the self-destructive nature of inclusivity movements, the shielding power of identitarian labels, and the importance of individual action and community involvement in addressing these pressing issues. This eye-opening conversation is essential for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the forces shaping our society.--Donate here: https://t.co/PE1rfuVBmbFor more content follow me here:Twitter - @VivekGRamaswamyInstagram - @vivekgramaswamyFacebook - http://facebook.com/VivekGRamaswamyTruth Social - @VivekRamaswamyRumble - @VivekRamaswamy--Time-codes:00:01:24 - Factors contributing to the trend of mentally ill as cultural icons00:03:08 - America's direction and Mao's blueprint comparison00:05:10 - The new culture of exclusion in the name of inclusivity00:09:18 - Paradox of civil rights and inclusivity's circular nature00:11:14 - Self-destructive nature of inclusivity movements00:16:10 - Identitarian labels as a shield against accountability00:20:38 - The Corporate Equality Index and its implications00:24:47 - ESG investing and its impact on executive compensation00:26:17 - The ESG cartel and its influence on American industry00:30:00 - National security threat posed by ESG constraints00:32:00 - China's unrestricted warfare strategy00:34:00 - Tesla as an example of a company beholden to China00:38:15 - The importance of individual action and community involvement00:39:49 - The need for participation in local politics00:40:27 - Understanding the playing field and corporate loyalty

Keith, Russ, and Bennett discuss and debate the recent headlines of the week.Biden Signs Measure Ending COVID-19 National EmergencyFauci's at It AgainBREAKING: FBI sent undercover agents into Catholic churches to investigate domestic extremismNewly Obtained Documents Allegedly Show the White House and NARA Lied About the Mar-a-Lago RaidBiden unveils toughest-ever car emissions rules in bid to force electric vehicle purchasesHere are the 7 biggest revelations from the US leaks so farFBI arrests Massachusetts Air National Guardsman Jack Teixeira in probe of classified document leaksThis Weeks Losers: Bud LightEven Hell's Kitchen?Bud Light using Dylan Mulvaney to boost their 'Corporate Equality Index' score: 'This is basically a racket'The Straight Hate On Bud Light Is Real And These Sales Numbers Show ItMusic and Sound Effects Provided by:The Little GangsterBy EGProductionsShredderBy EpiktonJourney Into DepthBy SymphoMixAstronaut CountdownBy Motion Array Originals: Musical SFXDetective WorkBy CueTracksCinematic SoundtrackBy LuLuProductionFree The DragonBy KorshunIn The CircusBy EITAN EPSTEIN MUSICSupport the show

Why has TikTok trans propagandist Dylan Mulvaney suddenly become the face of Bud Light and other brands? Does this stuff actually work? Detransitioner Oli London joins to lay out the enormous power held by the Human Rights Campaign and its "Corporate Equality Index." Plus, West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey responds to the Supreme Court's disappointing response to the state's law protecting girls' sports.Support the show: http://www.charliekirk.com/supportSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to this week's Weekly Sceptic podcast – episode 32!  Nike Women's wear and Bud Light chose to commit financial suicide this week by hiring Dylan Mulvaney to be the face of both brands; Nick and Toby discuss how the Corporate Equality Index may be behind these decisions and how it's becoming increasingly hard to distinguish between the latest woke nonsense and satirical memes.  Trans rights activists have assaulted another person with whom they disagree – this time it was the turn of swimmer, Riley Gaines, at a speech she gave at San Francisco State University. Toby and Nick discuss this as well as how Gaines was held hostage and how the incident was reported as a ‘peaceful protest' by the mainstream media.  Still on the trans subject – Toby discusses the possible inflation of numbers of trans people in the last census.  Nick discusses Channel 4's descent into newer depths of depravity – with the release of their new show ‘Naked Education' – and Toby wonders whether flashers and perverts have simply moved from Hampstead Heath to Channel 4 in the past 30 years.  Toby and Nick discuss the Dalai Lama asking a young boy to suck his tongue and debate whether the whole thing was so unbelievably weird it wasn't in fact predatory behaviour… The boys also discuss Joe Biden sniffing the hair of young girls.  Toby talks about The Workers Protection Bill, explains what a terrible law it would be and his good work to stop it.  Nick talks about the Labour attack adverts against Rishi Sunak – and their rank hypocrisy.  In Birdwatch – Toby and Nick discuss Elon labelling NPR and BBC as ‘government funded media' and taking The New York Times blue checkmark away!  Nick and Dr Will Jones discuss this week's most interesting recent stories from the Daily Sceptic.  And finally, Toby and Nick compete for this week's Peak Woke title. If you would like to attend a live recording of the Weekly Sceptic and meet the gang at the Emmanuel Centre on 20 May, go to the Daily Sceptic website and click on the banner at the top of the page to buy a ticket (but turn your ad-blockers off).  To advertise on one of the fastest growing podcasts in the world – or if you have a question for Dr Peterson – drop Nick or Toby a line on thedailysceptic@gmail.com.  Please go to https://dailysceptic.org/ and make a donation so we can continue to bring you all this high quality content.  Subscribe to Nick's substack at https://nickdixon.substack.com/.  Listen to Nick's podcast – The Current Thing – by going here https://currentthingpod.podbean.com.  Produced by Jason Clift.  Music by Tinderella. 

NPR is state-affiliated media. Biden is ramping up the propaganda machine ahead of 2024. What is the Corporate Equality Index? San Francisco State supports ransoms. Intel docs are released and the US has egg on its face. The Dalai Lama is a degenerate tied to NXIVM. I engage in shock jockery.

Today, I open with a reminder of the philosophy of Niccolo Machiavelli when training future rulers. To summarize, a wise ruler must think of a way to make the citizens need the state and that leader at all times and under all circumstances. He wanted rules to make the people dependent on the state (government), making them more easily controlled. The only way to make this work in modern society is to eliminate individual freedom and liberty. This goes back to the doctrine of Barack Obama to fundamentally transform our nation. We start with the president of France, Emmanuel Macron who, after meeting with Chinese president Xi Jingping, intimated that decoupling from the US Dollar may be better for the whole of Europe. Our ally wants to avoid being seen as nothing more than a blind follow of the US. This is our ally speaking! Russia and Iran were also meeting over the weekend, conspiring ways to weaken the US Dollar. Our enemies and allies are now both trying to achieve the same goal. Joe Manchin still cannot believe how the Inflation Reduction Act isn't being implemented properly. He still is lying to himself that the Act is going to bring back more manufacturing and energy independence to America. Instead, it's once again giving power and control over to China. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez believes in a two tiered system of governance. She said if a Federal court rules in a way the Administration does not like, simply ignore the court ruling. She once again believes the third co-equal branch of government is meant to be subservient to the Executive and Legislative branches. Remember during the trucker strike in Canada, I said to keep on eye on them as they are the Canary in the coal mine? That what happens in Canada is heading for the United States? Turns out there is a new bill being pushed called the 2SLGBTQI+ Protection bill. It will remove anyone's right to protest or free speech if someone in that community feels aggrieved or offended. And, right on cue, the Biden regime is deciding to blackmail states by altering the language for Title IX. Instead of being a law that allows women's extracurricular activities to be equally funded, Biden now wants to include the entirety of the alphabet community including men who think they are women. It's insidious and dangerous and needs to be fought. Riley Gaines is pursuing legal action against those who assaulted and attacked her on the campus of San Francisco State University. She was scared and is still concerned for her safety, but she feels she needs to keep fighting for women and their safety. Corporations are reaching out to the trans community to represent their brands. Why? Let me introduce you to the CEI score and it all circles back around to Barack Obama. The Corporate Equality Index overseen by the Human Rights Campaign whose current president is Kelly Robinson who previously worked as a political organizer for Obama's 2008 campaign. If corporations don't bow to the CEI score, they may find themselves the victims of the latest cancel-culture campaigns, assisted by their willing accomplices in the Legacy/mainstream media. Finally, for some levity, Jim Gossett gives us a wonderful parody of the old “Real Men of Genius” ad campaign for Bud Light. This time, it's “Real Marketing Genius!” Take a moment to rate and review the show and then share the episode on social media. You can find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, GETTR and TRUTH Social by searching for The Alan Sanders Show. You can also support the show by visiting my Patreon page!

Today on What's Right: The nuts and bolts of how Bud Light marketing missed the mark so badly What is the Corporate Equality Index and why do woke companies chase it? Bud Light's old Real American Heroes ads were warm, funny, and excellent Mark Wahlberg wants to create the next Hollywood in Las Vegas Kamala Harris goes to Nashville to praise rogue legislators Tensions heat up with China Biden's incompetence makes us vulnerable internationally Thanks for tuning into today's episode of What's Right! If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe to the show on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and make sure you leave us a 5-star review. Have personal injury questions? Visit ⁠Sam & Ash Injury Law⁠ to get free answers 24/7. Connect with us on our socials: TWITTER Sam ⁠@WhatsRightSam⁠ What's Right Show ⁠@WhatsRightShow⁠ FACEBOOK What's Right Show ⁠https://www.facebook.com/WhatsRightShow/⁠ INSTAGRAM What's Right Show ⁠@WhatsRightShow⁠ To request a transcript of this episode, email ⁠marketing@samandashlaw.com⁠

We are in a war. Many people who are fighting on the front lines have never been involved in "politics" or anything of this nature before. I "stumbled" into this fight as did many of my friends...and maybe you. The battle is at our front door and we have a choice to make. Riley Gaines on Twitter: "The prisoners are running the asylum at SFSU...I was ambushed and physically hit twice by a man. This is proof that women need sex-protected spaces. Still only further assures me I'm doing something right. When they want you silent, speak louder.

In this episode of the Impostor Syndrome Files, we talk about the human experience at work. Regardless of our roles, tenures, backgrounds, etc., at the end of the day, all any organization is a collection of humans – humans with very complex emotions, experiences and insecurities. For much of history, the expectation has been that we essentially check our humanity at the door when we enter the workplace. But what if that's not only a flawed design that hurts humans but also one that hurts businesses? After all, your ability to achieve business results depends entirely on the well-being of your people. My guest this week, Brian McComak, founder of Hummingbird Humanity, shares his vision to bring human-centered cultures to the workplace. About My GuestBrian McComak is the CEO & Founder of Hummingbird Humanity. He is a consultant, speaker, author, and facilitator with over 25 years of experience in DEI, HR, culture, change management, internal communications, and employee experience. He is an openly gay man and a person with a disability who shares his lived experiences in service of fostering workplaces where humans thrive.Before starting Hummingbird Humanity, he was the Global Head of Inclusion for Tapestry – the home of Coach, Kate Spade & Stuart Weitzman – where he developed and launched the company's DEI strategy. He put Tapestry ‘on the map' as a great place for inclusion, earning recognition from the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, Women in the Workplace, and Forbes' Best Places to Work for Diversity.Brian has also held leadership roles at leading global companies including The Walt Disney Company, L'Oreal, and Christie's Auction House. His internal experience spans a diverse variety of industries including fashion/retail, hospitality, auction, entertainment/media and he has consulted with organizations in technology, financial services, media, and non-profit.Join Brian in working to create a world where we accept each other, celebrate our differences, and recognize that we truly are better together.~Connect with Brian:HummingbirdHumanity.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bmccomak/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brianmccomak/ ~Connect with Kim and The Impostor Syndrome Files:Join the free Impostor Syndrome Challenge:https://yourcareersuccess.com/impostor-syndrome-challenge/ Learn more about the Leading Humans discussion group:https://yourcareersuccess.com/leading-humans-discussion-group/Join the Slack channel to learn from, connect with and support other professionals: https://forms.gle/Ts4Vg4Nx4HDnTVUC6 Join the Facebook group:https://www.facebook.com/groups/leadinghumansSchedule time to speak with Kim Meninger directly about your questions/challenges: https://bookme.name/ExecCareer/strategy-session Connect on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimmeninger/ Websites:https://yourcareersuccess.comhttps://impostorsyndromefiles.com

After consuming podcasts, articles, and think pieces (oh my), we decided to talk to more of our super-smart friends to help us fill in the blanks. In this episode, Ben and Sue are diving into the danger and disappointments of Rainbow Washing for the LGBTQIA+ community with the help of guests Angela Prestil (from CU Difference) and Lisa Koenecke (a Certified Diversity Equity Inclusion Speaker).Some recommendations you'll want to check out:The Human Rights Campaign (To find the Corporate Equality Index and the Municipal Equality Index and tons of other great resources)The Wisconsin LGBT Chamber of CommerceGet Lisa's book Be an Inclusion Ally:ABCs of LGBTQ+ at your local bookstore (or from Amazon if you have to).Support the Climb Africa project (especially Angela and Lisa and Katy Zaleski).CU PRIDE (The LGBTQ Association for Credit Unions)For a free, easy-to-use squirrel stalking, check out the Alfred Camera App.

As we bring LGBTQ+ Pride Month to a close, Jayzen is thrilled to have Deena Fidas on the show. Deena has had a fascinating career leading inclusion programs across the globe. She is currently the Managing Director and Chief Program and Partnerships Officer for Out & Equal Workplace Advocates, the premier organization working exclusively on LGBTQ workplace equality. Through their worldwide programs, Fortune 500 partnerships and their annual Workplace Summit conference, they help LGBTQ people thrive and support organizations creating a culture of belonging for all. In celebration of Pride Month, the Lead With Your Brand!™ Podcast has partnered with Out & Equal. Each week in June, we've featured an out leader each with an amazing career story to share. In addition, we've assembled an entire collection of shows with LGBTQ+ guests from the past three seasons, including two special roundtable episodes where we explore issues around the trans experience and intersectionality of race and LGBTQ+ in the workplace. The team at Out & Equal has created free downloadable discussion guides, so we encourage you to use the podcast as a virtual “book club” with your ERG or group of friends. Listen to the episodes, download the discussion guides and schedule your group discussion! Check out www.leadwithyourbrand.com/pride for more information. Happy Pride! Guest Bio Deena Fidas Managing Director & Chief Program and Partnerships Officer Out & Equal Workplace Advocates As Managing Director and Chief Program and Partnerships Officer, Deena oversees Out & Equal's programs, both domestic and global as well as corporate partnerships, working with global companies and organizations to accomplish the next level of LGBTQ inclusion. Deena is a leading global workplace advocate. She was at the Human Rights Campaign for 12 years prior to Out & Equal where she led their workplace equality programs and Corporate Equality Index. Deena was behind some of the movement's largest corporate public policy mobilization efforts, including turning the tide for Corporate America's support for marriage equality and the Equality Act. Under her leadership, the number of Fortune 500 companies with full LGBTQ protections rose from less than half to a full majority, 90 percent. Deena has led inclusion programs on four continents and pioneered the development of corporate benchmarking tools here in the US and across Latin America and Asia to advance real policy change and impact people's everyday lives. She holds a Master's in Sociology from American University and prior to her work on LGBTQ inclusion, she worked in progressive fundraising, philanthropy and research. Links To learn more about Lead With Your Brand system, please visit: LeadWithyYourBrand.com To book Jayzen for a speaking engagement or workshop at your company, visit: JayzenPatria.com

Often we find ourselves in antiquated workplace systems where we are expected to thrive, despite all of the changes the world has been through. In this episode, I'm joined by Brian McComak, the founder of Hummingbird Humanity. Brian started Hummingbird Humanity as an initiative to bring humanity back to the workplace.  Brian shares his wisdom on how to bring a new approach to the workplace, so you can support your employees emotionally, make them feel seen and heard, help them thrive, and feel more like their authentic selves at work. Tune in as Brian gives tips on how to get started on bringing humanity back to the workplace and the concepts to use so you can become a better servant leader. More About Brian McComak:Brian is a consultant, speaker, author, and facilitator with over 25 years of experience in DEI, HR, culture, change management, internal communications, and employee experience. He is an openly gay man and a person with a disability who shares his lived experiences in service of fostering workplaces where humans thrive. Before starting Hummingbird Humanity, he was the Global Head of Inclusion for Tapestry where he designed and launched the company's DEI strategy. He put Tapestry ‘on the map' as a great place for inclusion, earning recognition from the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, Women in the Workplace and Forbes' Best Places to Work for Diversity. Join Brian in working to create a world where we accept each other, celebrate our differences, and recognize that we truly are #bettertogether.In this episode, we discuss:What inspired Brian to start Hummingbird HumanityWays leaders can bring more connection to their workplace, even if you don't know where to startOvercoming frustrations if you feel you are not getting results as a change agent for diversity, equity, and inclusionTips on how you can communicate effectively for maximum impactQuote from the episode:"So I said, I'm going to try something different, and see if I can be one of those humans, who is challenging the ways that we think about creating workplaces. That's what I get to do now. My hope is that I am making a difference for certainly at least one person, but hopefully lots of people, and how they lead, how they manage and how workplaces are embracing and creating spaces where everyone can thrive. Particularly, those who have been historically most marginalized and underrepresented in the workplace." - Brian McComakResources from this episode:Conservation series Hope, Hear, and The Human Spirit on YouTubeConnect with Amy: Sign up for: Create A Burnout Free Team & WorkplaceFree Activity: Three Steps To Love Your Job & Life TodayWork With AmyInstagram: @createmagicatworkWebsite: https://createmagicatwork.net/Connect with Brian:Brian on LinkedInHummingbird Humanity 

Happy Black History Month. If you don't hear that from anyone else today you've heard it from me. It might be the shortest month of the year but absolutely has the power to be the most impactful. As a person living at the intersections of being Black and Queer we are going to celebrate that this month. I'm going to highlight a Black person in history who lives or lived at those very intersections. I'm going to love doing it & I hope you enjoy listening to the stories. Now up first, Netflix is suspended from the HRC's Corporate Equality Index. Da Brat & Judy are expecting a baby and our Black History Month spotlight today is on Stormé DeLarverie.    00:00 - Welcome & Intro 00:54 - Rate & Review Queer News Ad 01:20 - Intro Music 02:01 - Netflix is suspended from the HRC's Corporate Equality Inde 05:30 - Da Brat & Judy are expecting a baby 06:17 - Black History Month spotlight today is on Stormé DeLarverie 07:55 - Anna's Got A Word    Corporate Equality Index 2022 https://www.hrc.org/resources/corporate-equality-index    About Queer News An intersectional approach to daily news podcast where race & sexuality meet politics, entertainment and culture. Tune-in to reporting which centers & celebrates all of our lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & comrade communities. Hosted by Anna DeShawn. 7 minutes a day, 5 days a week, ready by 9 a.m. We want to hear from you. Tune in and tell us what you think. email us at info@e3radio.fm. follow anna deshawn on ig & twitter: @annadeshawn. and if you're interested in advertising with “queer news,” write to us at info@e3radio.fm.

Welcome to Episode 67 of Pelo Buddy TV, an unofficial Peloton podcast & Peloton news show. This week we cover the following topics: A Peloton Bike was used in the season premiere of another TV show this past week. The 2022 Black History Month Celebration was announced on Friday. An investor published a letter calling for John Foley to be fired and Peloton to explore being acquired. Peloton was named one of the Best Places to Work for LGBTQ+ Equality in Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) 2022 Corporate Equality Index. A new artist series with Eminem was announced. Peloton held their first live boxing classes, and shared that new boxing classes will drop on-demand every Friday. Robin Arzon & Mariana Fernandez led an Encanto ride & yoga flow. Ross Rayburn led a Joni Mitchell artist series yoga flow. Peloton is having “Artist Series Replays” for Australia, starting with the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Emma Lovewell & Becs Gentry have some new guided scenic classes available from Oregon; including a two for one hike. Nico Sarani will be teaching one yoga class in English each month. Peloton has quietly updated Andy Speer's Total Strength 2 Program with some new warmups & stretches. Peloton has new patent applications for the rotating screen of the Bike+ and cleats for cycling shoes. The USPTO declared that two Peloton patents were void following a countersuit from Echelon. A woman is suing Peloton after breaking her ankles while trying to unclip from the Peloton Bike. The “Pop Culture Happy Hour” podcast on NPR featured Peloton this week. Emma Lovewell was featured in Taste of Home this month. Emma Lovewell has a new partnership. Dara Treseder was named to the ELITE 100 list. Robin Arzon celebrated her 8 year Peloton anniversary DJ John Michael celebrated 7 years at Peloton. Happy Birthday to Ben Alldis, Logan Aldridge, and Kendall Toole. John & Amanda share their class picks of the week. You can find links to full articles on each of these topics from the episode page here: https://www.pelobuddy.com/pelo-buddy-tv-episode-67/ The show is also available via YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/PeloBuddy

“I was looking for something to aspire to, but I also knew – I don't know why – it can't be the situation where I can't ascend to those things. What I see around me is not the true picture of the world. That's what I just started to tell myself. Maybe there's people here who think that's the case, but I don't believe it and I'm gonna set out to prove that's not the case; that there are people like me who do things like own businesses, or they're doctors, or lawyers or teachers even.” In Episode 15 of the ‘Why Care?' podcast, I am joined by Sheri Crosby Wheeler, Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion for Fossil Group, Inc. We discuss how stereotypes and expectations based on diversity characteristics can filter into young people's minds and be internalised to create and fuel self-fulfilling prophecies. We open the episode by discussing Sheri's journey into becoming a DEI practitioner. Born in a small town in Texas, Sheri then spent a few years in Germany due to her military father's station, before moving back to Texas to begin her education. Her small town in Texas had no Black professional role models for Sheri to look up to, so as soon as possible she moved to Atlanta to seek out professionals that looked like her. Following this discussion about a lack of role models, we talk about how Sheri had no Black teachers in her entire education until her postgraduate Law course, and how having no role models (or even an understanding of lived experience) during education can have an adverse effect on a young person. Sheri shares her personal story on how her teachers and guidance counsellors attempted to dissuade her from pursuing further education outside of Texas. She felt a weight of responsibility on her shoulders to ‘prove them wrong' and pressure not return to her hometown and therefore be seen as a failure. Working in the DEI field has its ups and downs, victories and losses, and we talk about these and how to prepare for the inevitable bad days. Sheri shares how it's not just about changing the minds of people, but changing hearts too: ‘heart work'. Sometimes people will just not have the capacity to care about your work and you need to be able to identify where to focus your attention on those whose minds and hearts you can change. We also discuss the unique challenges of DEI in the retail industry, including having a widespread employee base geographically, and empowering customer-facing employees to protect themselves and uphold inclusion. Fossil is currently focusing on building up communication and offering sharing and learning opportunities for its employees across the world. Sheri then gives insight as to why Fossil has been named one of the best companies for LGBTQ+ employees to work for by the Corporate Equality Index. Links For more from Sheri, you can find her on LinkedIn at Sheri Crosby Wheeler For more from Fossil visit their website at www.fossilgroup.com You can find more on the Sephora Racial Bias Study that Sheri mentions in this Forbes Article For more on Dr Charles Drew, the African American Doctor Sheri mentioned, you can find his Wikipedia article here. To hear Why Care? episodes first, sign up to our newsletter here, and you can find more from us at Avenir via our LinkTree here.

Best Infrastructure and LGBTQ Friendly Stocks, Plus… Green Bonds, Renewable Energy and ESG ETFs. Covered entities include: Vulcan Materials, Caterpillar, AECOM, Nucor, ChargePoint Technologies, iShares Global Green Bond ETF, VanEck Vectors Green Bond ETF, Alphabet Inc., Visa Inc., The Charles Schwab Corporation,  PayPal Holdings, Inc., Microsoft Corporation, Starbucks Corporation, Apple Inc., and LGBTQ100 ESG ETF PODCAST: Best Infrastructure and LGBTQ Friendly Stocks, Plus… Transcript & Links, Episode 60, June 18, 2021 Hello, Ron Robins here. Welcome to podcast episode 60 published on June 18, titled “Best Infrastructure and LGBTQ Friendly Stocks, Plus…” — and presented by Investing for the Soul. investingforthesoul.com is your site for vital global ethical and sustainable investing news, commentary, information, and resources. Remember that you can find a full transcript, links to content – including stock symbols, quotes, and bonus material – at this episode's podcast page located at investingforthesoul.com/podcasts. Now, just a reminder. I do not evaluate any of the stocks or funds mentioned in this podcast. Furthermore, if you're concerned about the ESG-sustainability or financial ratings of any stock or fund included in this podcast, check your broker's online site for such information. If your broker doesn't have ESG-sustainability information, signup for free with Morningstar and you can gain access to such company and fund ratings. Please note, I receive no compensation from Morningstar or anyone else covered in these podcasts. Also, if any terms are unfamiliar to you, simply Google them. ------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Best Infrastructure Stocks Now amid the continuing US talks on infrastructure Neha Chamaria has penned an article titled 5 Potential Winners from Biden's Infrastructure Plan. It appeared on fool.com. I name her picks and follow them with some of her remarks. “1) Vulcan Materials (NYSE: VMC) Vulcan is the nation's largest producer of aggregates, operates across 20 states, and has equal exposure to private (residential and nonresidential) construction and public infrastructure markets, positioning it well to benefit from nearly all kinds of construction activity. Vulcan is already experiencing strong demand… has a strong balance sheet (and) has steadily increased its dividend for years. 2) Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) … might be the leading construction equipment manufacturer, but it also has significant exposure to volatile sectors like mining and oil and natural gas. That's why a pure-play equipment stock like United Rentals (NYSE: URI) could be a better potential winner from Biden's infrastructure plan. United Rentals is the world's largest heavy-equipment rental company… Its revenue grew at a compound annual rate of 14% over the past decade. 3) AECOM (NYSE: ACM) Building anything requires planning, designing, and engineering, which is why an infrastructure consulting company like AECOM should benefit from an uptick in infrastructure spending in the U.S…. government is already its biggest client… 4) Nucor (NYSE: NUE) … is the largest and most diversified manufacturer of steel and steel products in the U.S… (and) is North America's largest scrap recycler… (Its) mini steel mills use electric-arc furnaces -- a more flexible, cost-effective method than traditional blast furnaces. (Also, Nucor) has a solid balance sheet… increasing its dividend payouts for 48 straight years. 5) ChargePoint Technologies (NYSE: CHPT) The (US) president's infrastructure plan includes a… network of 500,000 EV chargers across the nation by 2030. Currently, there are only around 42,500 charging station locations in the U.S… ChargePoint operates one of the world's largest EV charging networks and has a nearly 70% share of the domestic Level 2 charging network market… ChargePoint… sells hardware to station operators, which then subscribe to its software to manage the stations.” End quotes. ------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Best Green Bond Funds More and more ethical and sustainable investors are turning their attention to green bonds and the benefits they offer. Here are two articles on that theme. The first is titled How Eco-Conscious Is Your Portfolio? 2 Green Bond ETFs To Consider by Tezcan Gecgil at investor.com. Here are some quotes from the article. “1) iShares Global Green Bond ETF (NASDAQ: BGRN) The iShares Global Green Bond ETF provides access to global investment-grade green bonds that have been issued to fund environmental projects. Furthermore… the fund is U.S.-dollar hedged. Since its inception in November 2018, net assets have grown to $212 million. (The iShares Global Green Bond ETF)… tracks the returns of the Bloomberg Barclays MSCI Global Green Bond Select (USD Hedged) Index. (It has) bonds issued by governments of France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Italy as well as the European Investment Bank and KfW Group lead the names in the roster. 2) VanEck Vectors Green Bond ETF (NYSE: GRNB) Another green bond ETF that could be of interest to readers is the VanEck Vectors Green Bond which provides exposure to U.S.-dollar-denominated green bonds for financing environmentally-friendly projects. In addition to bonds issued in the U.S. and various European countries, VanEck Vectors Green Bond ETF also holds bonds from China, South Korea, Brazil, India, Chile, Indonesia and others.” End quotes. ------------------------------------------------------------- 3. Best Green Bond Funds The second article on green bonds is titled $1.2tn US giant launches core impact bond fund into Ucits market. It's by Chris Sloley and was on the citywireselector.com site. The fund is for investors in Denmark, Netherlands, Switzerland, Germany, UK, and Italy. Here are some quotes… “Global investment giant Nuveen has launched its Global Core Impact Bond fund for Ucits investors to capitalise on opportunities created by ‘ESG leaders'. The multi-currency bond fund will invest across all global fixed income markets… Focusing on perceived ‘ESG leaders', the bond fund will find companies setting an example in their respective industry or sector, with respect to ESG risks and behaviours… The fund may allocate up to 40% in emerging markets and 15% in high yield, at the managers' discretion. It will launch with $25m (€20.5m) of seed capital.” End quotes. ------------------------------------------------------------- 4. Best LGBTQ Friendly Stocks Since this is Pride Month and numerous LGBTQI+ investors are ethically and sustainably oriented, here's an article for members of that community. It's titled Ethical Investing for Pride Month: 10 Gay-Friendly Stocks To Buy. It's by John Csiszar and was on the gobankingrates.com site. Here are some quotes from his article. “1) Alphabet Inc. (GOOG) Google, now trading under parent company Alphabet, has long been a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community. The company has a specific support group for the LGBTQ community, known as ‘Gayglers'. 2) International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) IBM was one of the first companies to include sexual orientation in its nondiscrimination policy, back in 1984. The company established its Global LGBT Council, designed to make the workplace safe for everyone, in 1995. 3) Visa Inc. (V) Visa has appeared on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index for five years running, marking it as one of the best places to work for LGBTQ employees. Visa supports the United Nations Standards for LGBTI, which outlines five standards of conduct that the business community can use to combat discrimination against lesbian, bi, gay, trans and intersex people. 4) The Charles Schwab Corporation (SCHW) Schwab has received a 100% rating on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index for LGBTQ+ inclusion for over 15 years… Internally, Schwab has created a diversity and inclusion group known as PRIDE, dedicated specifically to the LGBTQ+ network at Schwab. 5) The Coca-Cola Company (KO) The company has scored 100% on the HRC's Corporate Equality Index every year since 2006. Coca-Cola has also designed a separate Business Resource Group specifically to address LGBTA issues. Other LGBTQ-focused resources that Coca-Cola supports include the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund and The Trevor Project. 6) PayPal Holdings, Inc. (PYPL) PayPal is another company scoring a perfect 100% on the Human Rights Campaign's Equality Index, and it strongly promotes LGBTQ rights. The company has a benefits flyer that outlines all its health benefits for transgender employees, from hormone replacement therapies and voice modification surgery to therapy sessions and more. 7) Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) Microsoft and its employees have donated over $2 million to organizations supporting the LGBTQI+ community just over the past year… Microsoft has received a perfect 100% score on the HRC's Equality Index for 13 years running. 8) Target Corporation (TGT) As with many of the other companies making the HRC Equality Index, Target has signed the Equality Act. Target has developed its own PRIDE Manifesto, designed to emphasize the company's dedication to equality. Target also produces clothing and other products indicating its backing of the LGBTQ community. 9) Starbucks Corporation (SBUX) In addition to receiving a perfect 100% score on the HRC's Equality Index for 11 straight years, the company has recently donated $50,000 to the Lavender Rights Project. 10) Apple Inc. (AAPL) Apple isn't just the largest company in America, it's also one of the most consistent supporters of the LGBTQ community. Apple has been rated a best place to work for the LGBTQ community for 15 years straight.” End quotes. Also, note this article on a new Pride fund, titled, Pride Month meets Wall Street as new LGBTQ ETF hits the market by Ernestine Siu. Quote “ProcureAM, in partnership with LGBTQ Loyalty Holdings, launched the new LGBTQ100 ESG ETF.” End quote. ------------------------------------------------------------- Honorable Mentions 1. Title: My Top Renewable Energy Stock to Buy in June. “Bloom Energy (NYSE: BE) is the stock I think will be one of the hydrogen winners” says Travis Hoium, the article's author. 2. Title: Fidelity to Launch 5 New ESG Funds by Bernice Napach. Quoting the article, “All five new funds are actively managed and the two ETFs are Fidelity's first ETFs focused on ESG factors.” End quote. ------------------------------------------------------------- Ending Comment Well, these are my top news stories with their stock and fund tips -- for this podcast: “Best Infrastructure and LGBTQ Friendly Stocks, Plus…” To get all the links, stock symbols, or to read the transcript of this podcast -- and more -- go to investingforthesoul.com/podcasts and scroll down to this episode. Also, be sure to click the like and subscribe buttons in iTunes/Apple Podcasts or wherever you download or listen to this podcast. And please click the share buttons to share this podcast with your friends and family. Let's promote a better post COVID world through ethical and sustainable investing! Contact me if you have any questions. Stay well—and engaged with your ethical and sustainable values and investments! Thank you for listening. Talk to you next on July 2. Bye for now. © 2021 Ron Robins, Investing for the Soul.

For several years in a row, Aron has been on the Glassdoor top 100 CEO list and in 2012 he won the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. UKG was rated the #2 best large employer in America by Forbes, it received a 100% on the Corporate Equality Index, and prior to the merger both Kronos and Ultimate Software were separately named a Best Workplace for Parents by Great Place to Work. How do you build an organization where people love to come to work? Aron Ain, CEO of Ultimate Kronos Group (UKG), believes it is all about trust, transparency, and collaboration. Contrary to past fads, creating an engaged workforce is not about free food, free gym memberships, and frequent parties. As Aron says, “I believe people join organizations because of the organization. I believe they leave because of who they work for.” In this episode of the podcast Aron shares: How to keep consistency among leaders in an organization. What it means to be an “un-leader”. How to deal with failure. Why showing true gratitude for employees is so important and what that looks like. The importance of humility and vulnerability How to keep leaders accountable for being the best they can be And much more! The leaders that employees deal with on a daily basis make or break the experience that employee has. You can work for the best organization in the world, but if your direct manager is a horrible leader, you are going to hate your job. Because of that fact, leaders inside of UKG, known internally as people managers, are held accountable to be great. People managers are not just evaluated and rated by their direct reports, they are also evaluated by the employees who work for them. Twice a year employees inside of UKG are given a survey with 19 questions with straight forward questions that measure the effectiveness of their manager. These are separate from engagement surveys as those only measure the relationship between the employee and the organization, not the relationship between the employee and the manager. How to keep consistency among leaders in an organization Inside of any organization there could be anywhere from 10 to thousands of leaders who are in charge of teams. So how do you make sure that your leaders are consistent and living up to the company values? This is part of why UKG has the employee surveys in place. Leaders are evaluated by employees twice a year, and if they aren’t either at a 90% or higher, or at least improving each time, there are steps in place that are taken. Depending on the situation the first step if a leader is struggling is to have a conversation and see if improvements can be made. The next step may be to move the person out of a leadership role, while still remaining at the company. And if all else fails, they may be asked to leave the company if they aren’t a good fit with the company values. Having these ratings from employees is a huge game-changer as leaders typically look at employee engagement surveys to get a feel for how they are doing, but that’s not an accurate picture of the employee-manager relationship. Aron shares a story about when UKG first started implementing these manager effectiveness surveys. There was a manager who asked Aron for a sit down meeting. When they were talking the manager asked Aron, “Are you going to train me to be a better manager?”. Aron told him that of course he would, but wondered why the manager was coming to him at that moment asking for help. The manager told Aron that he had always seen himself as a great leader because his team always gave high scores on engagement surveys. But when it came time for these new surveys he received a 59 out of 100 and he was shocked. He had never had the right data that would help him measure his true performance. Well after realizing it he worked hard to improve and two years later he had a score in the 90s. It is so important for leaders to get an accurate view of how employees see them. How can you expect them to change if they don’t realize they are doing anything wrong. As Aron shares, “Our homegrown training program for our managers is called Courage to Lead. And I tell them the action word isn't lead. The action word in it is the courage, because it takes unbelievable courage to be a great leader. It's hard...it’s hard.” What does it mean to be an un-leader In Aron’s book, Work Inspired, he talks about the concept of the un-leader. What is an un-leader? Well Aron believes CEOs get too much credit when things go well and they get too much blame when things don’t go well. But this shouldn’t be the case. The reason organizations do well or don’t do well does not rely solely on what the CEO does, and CEOs need to have more humility and humbleness. They need to realize that the world doesn’t revolve around them. To be an un-leader means you realize the value of the people around you and as a leader you understand that you are not more important than anyone else in the organization. Un-leaders show respect, they offer dignity, and they are thoughtful to the people they work with. They realize that they play by the same rules as everyone else. When un-leaders don’t know something, they don’t act like they do. They admit that they are not sure. Aron says, “I don't expect everyone to care about people in the full spectrum of how I care about people. But I do expect everyone to be respectful. I do expect everyone to tell the truth. You want to ask people who work with-- you want to get on my bad side quickly, don't tell the truth. It's like, I just have no patience for that. Look, I'm a sore loser. I'll admit that, I play to win. But it doesn't mean I do it in a way that doesn't exhibit good sportsmanship and being thoughtful about it.” How to deal with failures when you give employees autonomy to experiment One of the key components of the UKG values is trust, it is something that Aron emphasizes. He doesn’t ask employees to gain his trust, they start with full trust in the very beginning, the trust is theirs to lose. So as a leader if you give full autonomy and trust to employees how do you deal with failures when they happen? Aron says for him it comes down to not keeping score. He says, “I try really, really hard to not keep score. And the reason I try really hard to not keep score, if you came and sold me on an idea to do something, and six months later, it's not going well-- and you know it better than anyone that it's not going well-- what do I want you to do? I want you to stop it, stop the project, stop throwing good money at a bad idea. But if every time I'm keeping score, and I'm going to put you in the penalty box, then you're going to spend another six months absolutely, positively proving it was a stupid idea. And wasted another six months of time and money. So that's how I deal with failure. Now, if the same people keep bringing ideas, and we say, okay, go do it. And it keeps being a dumb idea. And at some point, I say, well, I'm not sure that this person has great judgment on ideas like this, but I certainly start with the way I described it.” Action items for leaders who want to start improving When asked what advice he has for leaders who are looking to better themselves, Aron says the biggest thing is to understand the world doesn’t revolve around you. Work hard to trust your people, communicate with them, be transparent, and show them respect. You should also respect that people have lives outside of the organization and that their families are the most important thing and they should come first. Take time and think about what it looks like to trust your people. If you trust them to get their work done, how does that exhibit itself? You can’t just say the words, you have to make trust a living breathing part of your organization. “If we want to be great leaders, if we want to create organizations where everybody loves to work, if you want to have these places that have these great people work for us, then you better find ways to engage them and you better do these key components around this that we've been talking about. You may be able to trick the people to come work for you. But you're not going to keep them.”

How has the LGBTQ community in the supply chain workplace been affected throughout civil unrest in 2020? Beck Bailey, director of workplace equality at the Human Rights Campaign answers this and shares a deep look at the latest insights from the Corporate Equality Index, www.hrc.org/cei. WHERE TO FIND US: www.sdcexec.com www.facebook.com/sdcexec www.twitter.com/sdcexec www.instagram.com/sdcexec www.linkedin.com//supply-demand-chain-executive

Sheehy brings to clients, 20 years of project and program management experience. She manages a range of advisory projects including sustainability training initiatives, sustainability risk assessments and greener market positioning support. Sheehy’s other work experience included updating and growing the Corporate Equality Index for the Human Rights Campaign and served as director of Corporate Benchmarking Services at the Investor Responsibility Research Center, where she provided social and environmental screening data on companies to institutional investors. Sheehy holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Notre Dame, an Master of Business Administration from the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland, and is a certified Project Management Professional. Catherine joins Sustainable Nation to discuss: Background on UL and Catherine's role within UL Health impacts and reopening workspaces during Covid-19 Sustainability certification space and importance of pursuing certifications UL 3600 (circularity) standard Advice and recommendations for sustainability leaders Catherine's Final Five Question Responses: What is one piece of advice you would give other sustainability professionals that might help them in their careers? I think that sustainability professionals exist everywhere in an organization, whether or not they have a title with sustainability in the name, but for those who are a sustainability by title, I would say, n my experience, a lot of folks are influencers more than they are purse holders, right? So they are advising and guiding the organization toward the tools and the solutions that are going to help make a difference to their organization. And so, learning about change enablement and, being engaged in networked in your organization is going to be key to the success of any sustainability professional. When I've talked to those who hold those kinds of roles in organizations, one of the things that recurs in terms of what they describe as their role, it's that of an influencer it's that of, a person who's really skilled at change enablement and someone who is trying to help people see a different way of viewing the same information. So, network influence, be connected within your organization. What are you most excited about right now in the world of sustainability? Hmm. I think I mentioned earlier when my excitement is really about what I see as the potential for integration, hearing the investors talk about ESG, the way that they are, it's not about necessarily making the world a better place, but that obviously is part of it. Those are the outcomes that we're all trying to achieve, but they really do see this as part of investment risk analysis is simply the non-financial data that they need to incorporate into that analysis. I see product managers, human resource managers all now having that conversation about these issues that some of us have been working on for decades. So to your point, you know, what has happened over the past 10 years, I've seen a sea change and I'm hopeful that that's going to accelerate because it needs to, because the issues that we're all also trying to address are pressing and urgent. What is one book you would recommend sustainability leaders read? Yep. I think in light of recent events, I am trying to educate myself about equity issues. More than some of the issues I've paid attention to, to date. So certainly I'm engaged as an employee in my organization, in our diversity and inclusion efforts. I've focused a lot of attention on sustainability or environmental issues, and I've known that there are environmental justice issues that relate to those things, but I'm not very well educated about those things. So I've actually just started this book by Mary Robinson. Who's the former President of Ireland, a UN special envoy on climate change and UN commissioner for human rights, titled Climate Justice: Hope, Resilience, and the Fight for a Sustainable Future. She published last year. It's an engaging read and so I'd recommend that. I will say I'm on my own journey and finishing it, but it's so far it's good and engaging and really good connector across the issues that we're all much more aware of these days in light of Black Lives Matter. And some of the reasons that people are in the streets protesting. What are some of your favorite resources or tools that really help you in your work? I look at a lot of blogs and this was hard for me to think of because I look at a lot of blogs. I look at a lot of articles from various publications. I go back to a lot GreenBiz waste dive because we have a strong practice in circular economy. We're looking at the recycled content, newsletters, and magazines. So those are the ones that I go to with regularity. And finally where can our listeners go to learn more about your work and the work being done at UL? Well, the main website, ul.com is where you can find a lot of information. We have a presence on LinkedIn and a Twitter account as well. And we show up on other sites like GreenBiz and elsewhere. So I'd start at ul.com and go out from there.

She is a passionate, articulate advocate for problem-solving, innovation, and effective leadership. Her mission is to inspire, equip and connect individuals and teams to seize opportunities, face challenges, and accelerate impact in their communities and places of work. She knows that everyone has more potential than they realize, that those closest to the problem understand the problem best, and that leading to unlock the potential in others and actually solve problems can result in both progress and joy. Carly shares her leadership experience and approach to problem-solving in a variety of ways. In addition to her regular speeches to students, businesses and non-profits, she is the founder and Chairman of Carly Fiorina Enterprises, and of Unlocking Potential, a non-profit organization that invests in human potential by supporting local leaders who are solving problems in their communities and places of work; equipping them with the behaviors, characteristics, disciplines and tools to increase their leadership and problem-solving capacity. Carly and her team use the experiences, stories and lessons from innovators and problem-solvers to teach practical, real-world solutions to challenges many listeners face. Carly’s experience spans from secretary to CEO, from public to private, and from for-profit to non-profit. She started out as a secretary for a nine-person real-estate business and eventually became the first woman ever to lead a Fortune 50 company. When Carly was recruited to lead Hewlett Packard (HP) in 1999, the industry was facing the worst technology recession in 25 years. Under Carly’s leadership, revenue grew, innovation tripled, growth quadrupled, and HP became the 11th largest company in the U.S. During her tenure at HP, the company received numerous civic recognitions, including being named one of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens by Business Ethics Magazine, one of the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers by Working Mother Magazine, receiving a 100% rating by The Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index, and being named one of the World’s Most Respected Companies by The Financial Times and PricewaterhouseCoopers. After leaving HP, Carly focused her efforts on giving back. Prior to Unlocking Potential, she served as the Chairman of Good360, the world’s largest product philanthropy organization, and as Chairman of Opportunity International, a Christian-based organization that lifts millions out of poverty around the globe through micro-finance. She also founded the One Woman Initiative in partnership with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, to engage and empower women in Pakistan, Egypt, India and the Philippines through increased access to economic opportunity. Carly was appointed by President Bush and CIA Director Michael Hayden to serve as the Chairman of the External Advisory Board of the CIA after 9/11. In this capacity, she held the highest clearances available to a civilian, and focused her efforts on CIA recruitment policies, information technology capabilities and organizational integration. In 2015, Carly launched a campaign for President. Running as a political outsider, Carly spoke about empowering and engaging citizens to take back government from a political ruling class that has failed to deliver results. There, many more Americans came to know her as a clear-eyed, direct leader capable of actually solving problems. Carly is also a best-selling author. Her titles include Tough Choices and Rising to the Challenge. Her third book Find Your Way is out now. In February 2019, Carly and The Busch School of Business at The Catholic University of America began an academic partnership. Carly was appointed the Distinguished Clinical Professor in Leadership and together they are integrating Carly’s leadership and problem-solving curriculum into the business student experience.

In Vino Fabulum! In Wine, Story!Find the #InVinoFab podcast on Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, & Apple PodcastsTo subscribe and listen to the next episode of #InVinoFab on: https://invinofab.transistor.fm/subscribe https://twitter.com/invinofab with hashtag: #InVinoFabhttps://www.instagram.com/invinofab/ Email us to be a guest or share a topic suggestion? invinofabulum@gmail.com Connect with your co-hosts on Twitter:https://twitter.com/laurapasquini (she/her)https://twitter.com/profpatrice (she/her)----On #InVinoFab episode no. 64 we are joined by Cordelia who shares her lived experience navigating transition in her personal and professional life. We discus identity, visibility, and trans workplace inclusion. Cordelia does assessment in the higher education space. As a part-time Ph.D. student, she hopes to research at the intersections of employment and the trans identity. As a trans woman herself, Cordelia navigates the world as a digital native hoping to breathe some authenticity into an oversaturated space! She is Sagittarius sun, Gemini Moon, and Aquarius rising and is looking for your input on her charts! Cordelia enjoys video games, DnD, and a nice Rosé!Twitter: https://twitter.com/SheCordeliaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/shecordelia/ We had a deep talk about what it means to transition and the impacts it has on you personally, professionally, and socially. I am grateful for the real talk and open conversation on what it means to actualize yourself as a woman. We discuss privilege, loss, career search, individual expectations, the “norms” in society, and her personal lived experience as a trans woman in the world today.  And, we are reminded that: “Visibility is a person's own journey.” ~ @SheCordelia Here are a few things we discussed on this #InVinoFab episode: Epistemology shop talk for research What's Your Research Worldview? Living Learning Communities at Mason The Genderbread Person v4.0 International Transgender Day of Visibility: March 31st Human Rights Campaign (HRC) works to educate the public on issues that transgender people face and to advocate for full inclusion and equality => Explore: Transgender  HRC's Corporate Equality Index 2020 [REPORT] and Workplace Resources Hashtags & Communities to Connect to: #TransIsBeautiful & The Okra Project @TheOkraProject Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist TV show #ZoeysPlaylist #FreeTheFemme: The aesthetics of survival by Hari Nef (@harinef) | TEDxConnecticutCollege “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” ~ Maya Angelou The Pink Tax http://www.pink.tax/ Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood: Book & TV Show You Were Born for This by Chani NicolasFind Your Chart https://chart.chaninicholas.com/  StrengthsFinder Inventory  #InVinoFab Episode #40: Gender Equality in Higher Ed Work Throwback to Canned Wine: #InVinoFab Episode #48: You CAN Wine => Cordelia's Choice: Underwood Rosé Stories to WATCH and view again: Altered Carbon & The Matrix (1999) If you or someone you know is in need of help, please refer them to the 24/7, free and confidential support for anyone who is in distress or crisis to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255 

The latest edition of the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index was released last month, rating more than a thousand of the largest corporations in the U.S. for their “commitment to LGBTQ equality and inclusion.” In their press release, the HRC, which is the largest LGBTQ lobbying firm in the country and the self-appointed authority over corporate compliance to standards they created, excitedly announced that a record 686 of America's leading companies and law firms now rigorously protect LGBTQ people. Nearly half the world's Fortune 500 companies earned a 100 rating—the highest possible—while more than half of the top 200 law firms in the United States received the same score. It's ironic how often orthodox Christians are accused of being obsessed with sex these days. After all, what's more obsessive than investigating thousands of businesses to determine whether they're “kind” and “inclusive” only to those who engage in certain types of sexual behavior, and not to anyone else? It would be creepy enough if HRC kept this obsession to themselves, but they've successfully weaponized the Equality Index as a formidable force of their obsession. Corporations clamor to get a good score. They wear this new “good housekeeping seal of approval” proudly and loudly, joining marches and decorating their offices and social media feeds. And, becoming “HRC approved” is no small task. The Index not only measures whether or not businesses “support an inclusive culture…,” but also whether or not a business has sufficiently demonstrated “a public commitment to LGBTQ equality.” In other words, companies must publicly advocate for LGBTQ equality to a degree acceptable to HRC ideologues. Companies know that failing to meet the ever-higher standards of inclusion and advocacy are put on another list: the acceptable targets of scorn and bullying list. Such tactics work, as is evidenced by an entire sector of American culture bowing to self-appointed experts. The larger social pressure to conform that we all feel as individuals now applies to businesses small and large, such as Chick-fil-A's corporate decision to not only drop support for certain Christian charities who were noticeably on the wrong side of the HRC, but also to publicly announce that decision. The same pressure has also effectively leveraged state political bodies to take legal action against small businesses like Masterpiece Cakeshop in Colorado, or Arlene's Flowers in Washington, both of which served LGBTQ customers but failed to pass muster because they refused to participate in same-sex weddings. Give HRC and like-minded LGBTQ allies credit: Their work has been incredibly effective, largely bending not only corporate America to their will, but also city halls, state houses, and Congress. It's essential we understand the ramifications if what they've achieved through social and economic pressure is then further enshrined into law. Specifically, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (or SOGI) laws would place sexual orientation and gender identity on par with race and religion as protected classes under the Civil Rights Act. The cultural transformation would then be complete. As our friends at the Alliance Defending Freedom warn us, these laws, like the so-called “Equality Act” now in Congress, would finally enshrine LGBTQ ideology in schools and libraries; in public and private restrooms, homeless shelters, and havens for victims of abuse. “Creative professionals” would lose the ability to live out their faith in their work. Christian organizations that provide public services, like foster care facilities and adoption agencies, would be forced to choose between their convictions and their existence. While some have sought to mitigate these sorts of consequences by proposing various compromises and exemptions, the substance and the influence of HRC's corporate scorecard makes something perfectly clear: Compromise is not on the table for them. Which leaves two important points all Christians must begin to consider. First, elections matter. Second, it's more than likely the pressure, whether social or corporate or cultural or familial, will test our convictions. We should decide now where we must stand.

In this episode Stephanie shares insights from the brand new 2020 HRC Corporate Equality Index update. Learn how we can leverage this index as a community and have a greater impact through our purchasing and career decisions! Show notes at https://lgbtqmidlifemoney.com/hrc100

In a game of he said, Gritty said, The Philadelphia Flyers googly-eyed Cousin It looking orange mascot is accused of assaulting a 13-year-old fan after said fan was tapping on Gritty's head. Lots of accusations and no proof. But first, The HRC 2020 Corporate Equality Index is released and Harry Hamlin claims his role as a gay man in the 1982 motion picture "Making Love" excluded him from working on pictures ever again. We agree with Hamlin that the movie was way before its time and Hollywood still has a level of homophobia. Apple Podcasts: apple.co/1WwDBrC Spotify: spoti.fi/2pC19B1 iHeart Radio: bit.ly/2n0Z7H1 Tunein: bit.ly/1SE3NMb Stitcher: bit.ly/1N97Zqu Google Podcasts: bit.ly/1pQTcVW Pandora: pdora.co/2pEfctj YouTube: bit.ly/1spAF5a Also follow Tim and John on: Facebook: www.facebook.com/focusgroupradio Twitter: www.twitter.com/focusgroupradio Instagram: www.instagram.com/focusgroupradio

What makes the gay rights campaign one of the most successful advocacy movements of all time? The LGBTQ community started with corporate America. We recognized our impact as an economic powerhouse and partnered with the business community to promote diversity and inclusion, leveraging corporate influence in the political sphere to further LGBTQ causes. And Capital One is among the businesses that appreciate the value of the queer community and invest in our success through a number of social impact initiatives. Andy Navarrete is the Executive Vice President and Head of External Affairs at Capital One. In his role, Andy manages the company’s Corporate Affairs function, including media and public relations, community banking and finance, community development and relations, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and corporate philanthropy. Capital One is committed to supporting the LGBTQ community, earning a 100% rating on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index for the sixteenth consecutive year. On this episode of Queer Money, Andy joins us to share Capital One’s social impact journey, explaining what inspired the company’s commitment to make credit a lot more democratic. He discusses the business value in hiring ambassadors who reflect the communities they serve, partnering with nonprofits like The Ali Forney Center, and going all-in to celebrate Pride. Listen in for Andy’s insight around Capital One’s commitment to corporate social responsibility and learn how the bank is working to serve the LGBTQ community.

How do you feel about going to the bank? Does it sound boring? Or maybe a little intimidating? Who do you expect to talk to there? Somebody in a suit who doesn’t really get you? What if the banking experience was more fun and less stressful? What if you could talk to someone like you—and get the help you need? Jennifer Windbeck is the Managing Vice President of Capital One Cafés and Branches, In-Store Experience, Operations and Network Management with Capital One. In her role, Jennifer leads the growing network of cafés across the US, and she is responsible for associate and customer experience and localized brand-building activities. Capital One is committed to supporting the queer community, earning a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index. The bank was also designated as one of best places to work in terms of LGBT equality for the sixteenth consecutive year! On this episode of Queer Money, Jennifer joins us to explain what Capital One means by Banking Reimagined and discuss how the company is tapping into emerging retail trends through their café experience. She describes the bank’s just-in-time money coaching, sharing Capital One’s focus on personal connection and adapting to what people really need. Listen in for Jennifer’s insight around Capital One’s efforts to hire a diverse group of ambassadors and learn how the bank is engaging with trusted organizations in the communities it serves.

Big businesses at Pride. Good or bad? I think it's a great idea, but maybe you disagree. Let's discuss! There are even some tools out there like the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index that can help us formulate educated opinions. Be sure to connect with me online! Email: contact@thegaypro.com Twitter: @TheGayProFM Facebook: @TheGayPro Instagram: @TheGayPro Web: http://thegaypro.com/

“They give 90s to companies like Walmart that treat their employees terribly.” Today’s labor history: Birth of Glove Workers Union president Agnes Nestor. Today’s labor quote by Albert Parsons.

In connection with the celebration by my law firm, @Orrick, of Pride Month and the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, I discussed with Alvin Lee and Amy Pasacreta of Orrick The Great Believers, by Rebecca Makkai, which is a very moving, beautiful and at the same time devastating, award winning novel about the AIDs epidemic in Chicago in the 1980s, its impact on young gay men and on the survivors as well. I’m very proud to say that Orrick has a long standing commitment to inclusiveness that enables the LGBTQ lawyers and staff of the firm to be authentic and to thrive. For 13 consecutive years, Orrick achieved a perfect score in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s annual Corporate Equality Index, which evaluates LGBTQ-related policies and practices, and Orrick was one of the first global law firms to offer benefits to same-sex couples and to also offer fully inclusive transgender benefits.

Dr. Rohini Anand is Global Chief Diversity Officer for Sodexo, responsible for the strategic direction, implementation, and alignment of Sodexo's integrated global diversity and inclusion initiatives, as well as Sodexo's corporate social responsibility and wellness strategies. Under Dr. Anand’s leadership, Sodexo received the prestigious 2012 Catalyst Award and has ranked in the top ten for nine consecutive years on the DiversityInc business index of Top Companies for Diversity and Inclusion. In addition, The Human Rights Campaign has given Sodexo a 100 percent rating on its Corporate Equality Index for nine years and Sodexo was named Global Sustainability Industry Leader in its sector for the 13th year in a row by the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI). Additionally, Sodexo has been ranked as the top-scoring company in its sector for its excellent sustainability performance in the benchmark RobecoSAM ‘Sustainability Yearbook 2017’ for ten consecutive years. Today, the Sodexo brand is synonymous with diversity, sustainability, and wellness leadership. Sodexo’s remarkable global culture change, led by diversity and inclusion, is featured in a Harvard Business School case study entitled Shifting the Diversity Climate: the Sodexo Solution as well as profiled in several books on global diversity and inclusion. Dr. Anand received her Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. She chairs the Catalyst Board of Advisors and serves on the boards of several organizations including the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN), Community Wealth Partners, the National Organization on Disabilities (NOD) and Sodexo’s Stop Hunger Foundation. She also serves on the Charter Communications External Diversity and Inclusion Council. What you’ll learn about in this episode: How moving to the United States after growing up in India showed Rohini how it feels to be a part of a minority group for the first time How transitioning from being a consultant to working for a single company at Sodexo was a powerful opportunity for her How Sodexo is a giant worldwide organization as well as a global leader in diversity and inclusion How Sodexo managers are held accountable for inclusivity behaviors by linking a portion of their bonus pay to inclusivity metrics What specific measures are found on the inclusivity scorecards at Sodexo, and why it goes beyond checking off boxes What kind of backlash Sodexo initially saw when tracking inclusivity practices and linking them to bonuses, and how adding the right metrics made a difference What advice Rohini would offer to organizations who don't have the ability to link inclusivity metrics to bonuses How Sodexo has done studies that determined that more diverse teams are more productive and effective than less diverse teams Why cultural competence is a vital component for Sodexo, especially as a global company, and why trust and respect between teams across borders is key How Rohini keeps everyone engaged in inclusivity and diversity work, and why ingraining it into the organization's culture is vital Why global populism is causing a regression in diversity and inclusion around the world, and why corporations rather than governments will lead the charge for change What advice Rohini would offer to people who are new to diversity and inclusion work, and why partnerships and allies are key Additional resources: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/rohinianand/

The Human Rights Campaign is the largest national LGBTQ civil rights organization in the US. Their annual Equality Index is an increasingly influential ranking of US businesses with the best practices for LGBTQ workplace inclusion. In this podcast we go into more detail about the HRC, the annual Corporate Equality Index Survey, which policies and practices companies are being rated on and why it's so important for companies to keep this on their radar. For more information contact SHIFT at www.getShiftHR.com

#100: The Big 100th Episode - What's Next?   Jenn T Grace:              You are listening to the Personal Branding for the LGBTQ Professional Podcast, episode 100.   Introduction:              Welcome to the Personal Branding for the LGBTQ Professional Podcast; the podcast dedicated to helping LGBTQ professionals and business owners grow their business and careers through the power of leveraging their LGBTQ identities in their personal brand. You'll learn how to market your products and services both broadly, and within the LGBTQ community. You'll hear from incredible guests who are leveraging the power of their identity for good, as well as those who haven't yet started, and everyone in between. And now your host. She teaches straight people how to market to gay people, and gay people how to market themselves. Your professional lesbian, Jenn - with two N's - T Grace.   Jenn T Grace:              Well hello and welcome to episode number 100 of the podcast. I am your host, Jenn Grace, and today is a monumental episode. We are at episode 100. This podcast began back in January of 2013 and we are now in December of 2016, so it has been four solid years of podcasting with you. And I so appreciate those of you who've been around since the very beginning. I know you are out there because I have heard from you, and I continue to hear from you, which is amazing and awesome and I so love you for that. But today I do have a couple of announcements that are going to change the direction of what's happening, so I want to just kind of be honest with you, and keep you up to date, and fill you in on all of the things that are evolving and have been evolving for the last couple of months or so.                                     You may recall throughout the last year or so I have been introducing topics around authorship, and focusing a little bit on content marketing, but really focusing on authorship and writing books, and building a personal brand platform that has to do with being an author, which is such an important way to kind of have yourself stand out from the crowd, especially as we're entering 2017. So over the last year I have been sharing this information with you, and you may recall that I started the Purpose Driven Author's Academy back in February, so February of 2016. And that academy has been morphing, and evolving quite substantially over the last almost twelve months or so, and what I have decided to do- and have already done actually, so you are the first to know this because this podcast is airing at the end of December, 2016. So I haven't made this public announcement yet, and I plan on doing so in January, but I have started a full-fledged publishing company called Purpose Driven Publishing. And I'm super excited about it, and have been for a while. I decided to start this company back in August, and since then I've been working on the structure, the service offering, how I'm going to differentiate myself in the market, who I'm going to work with, and while that's been happening I've been really doubling down on what the Purpose Driven Author's Academy looks like, and it's really, really exciting is all I can tell you. Just super, super exciting. What I want you to know as a listener of this podcast, and somebody who is likely LGBTQ, and you're trying to figure out your personal brand, one of the things that I want to make sure is super clear is that the Purpose Driven Author's Academy and the publishing company in particular are 100% for you.                                     The company and the academy are completely designed around helping people who have a purpose, they have a mission in life, they have a desire to educate people on their topic, and a lot of the people that I have worked with in 2016 have been part of the LGBT community. Naturally since my audience is the LGBT community, I've had a lot of people that I've been helping work on their books for the last twelve months or so, at least since February in this formal academy capacity. Previous to that I have been working with LGBT people writing their books for- actually since about 2012, 2013. So it's been happening in a very informal capacity. As you likely know if you've been listening to this podcast over the last couple of months, you know that I've been kind of sharing this journey with you, and a little bit of the history of this. So I'm excited about this because I want to work with anyone who has a story to tell that is purpose driven, or mission driven, who is trying to use the authorship and writing a book, and being a respected person- a respected thought leader in your space to really use a book to be the foundation of what your personal brand stands for. So if that is something that you're interested in and want to know more about, I totally recommend you go to www.PurposeDrivenAuthorsAcademy.com. Hopefully by the time you're listening to this, the new site will be up. Can't guarantee, at the very least it will redirect you to some information on my current website that will give you information on that. And then also www.PurposeDrivenPublishing.com. That also will send you to my website currently, but I'm hoping by the time you listen to this it will go to the new website that gives a little more information about the publishing company, and what I plan on doing, and all that fun stuff. But I did want to share that with you because I really still want to continue working with LGBT people, or LGBTQ people I should say, and I want to do it in just a little bit different of a capacity.                                     So the things that I wanted to share with you is that my business is constantly morphing and shifting, and I think that that is the case for many people, and it's morphing and shifting a little bit as we enter 2017. Obviously first and foremost starting a publishing company, that is going to compete for my time when it comes to the business strategy related stuff. However I still will be doing LGBTQ business strategy related things. What I want to be clear on is that in 2017 I'm really looking for working in consulting capacities, or in speaking capacities at conferences for Fortune companies, for nonprofit organizations, whoever it might be who is in need of a message around LGBTQ. Those are the things that I'm going to be focusing on. So I'm excited about it but it's equally a little bit scary to be kind of venturing away from focusing on helping people market specifically. I've recently begun a re-positioning of my messaging, and really what that looks like for my business, and as you may recall my tagline for a very long time has been 'I teach straight people how to market to gay people, and gay people how to market themselves,' and I have since changed that to 'Because change happens in business.' And I firmly believe that change happens in business, and I think we all believe that, so I've changed my tagline accordingly. I've also added a little bit of a qualifying statement if you will to my Professional Lesbian logo. So the logo is my signature, and it says Professional Lesbian, now under that it says LGBT Business Strategist. So it gives a little bit of an idea of how the direction is changing, and like I said it's going to be away from the marketing now and really focused on consulting, business strategy, speaking and helping people, specifically LGBTQ and then a little bit more broadly anyone with a purpose that really wants to make an impact on the world, helping them author or publish their books.                                     So this is a little bit of a departure from what has been going on. The reason I'm telling you all of this is because it is going to impact the podcast. So we're in episode 100, it has been 100 episodes, four years, I've had incredible guests on the show from the very, very beginning, and what I am going to be doing is going on a bit of a hiatus. And I am being super honest with you in telling you that I'm not 100% how the return from my hiatus will happen, when it will happen, what's going to result from that. I'm a little bit unclear on that but I wanted to record this episode, this final one of 2016, and just say to hold tight, I'm not going to be producing any new episodes in the near future, I'm trying to figure out what this podcast might look like, however I do have 100 episodes. And I actually have more than 100 because in 2013 I did a special series called '30 Days and 30 Voices: Stories from America's LGBT Business Leaders,' and I recorded thirty interviews with thirty people over the course of thirty days, and I launched them in June, and 99% of the content from those interviews is 100% relevant now as it was three years ago in 2013. So most of the content, and most of the interviews that I've done, they're timeless in so many ways. In marketing we call it evergreen content. So it's content that just kind of keeps on churning, and providing value long after it's been recorded, so there's not much of an expiration date if you will.                                     So what I do plan on doing is essentially reusing a good amount of old podcasts for the start of 2017 at the very least. So if you have listened to every single podcast I have ever recorded, all 130 of them, you're amazing and you need to email me right away because you're a super fan and I would love to talk to you. But if you haven't listened to all 130, I'm going to be repurposing some from a while back, so I'm going back into the archives and I'm pulling out some good information from people that shared amazing stories in the past that you might have not listened to because for one reason or another you didn't know that they existed, or you never made it that far back. So in looking at my schedule, my line-up if you will for what I'm going to be repurposing in 2017, and some of the stuff that I'm going to do is going back to the basics of LGBT terminology. So it could be something of interesting to you, it might not be, and if it's not just don't listen to it and maybe the next one is going to be of more interest. But I do have things about building a strategy and a plan for your LGBT outreach, answering a lot of questions, tips and tricks about online marketing, talking about diversity and inclusion, and how LGBTQ kind of intersects with that, and then I have a lot of interviews. So I have interviews from out trans leaders, out lesbians, people from the Human Rights Campaign, I have people from the Williams Institute, nonprofit leaders of True Colors, a lot of LGBT entrepreneurs, people who work in supplier diversity, Out & Equal, and yeah out gay jewelry designers. So there's definitely a lot, a lot, a lot that I plan on repurposing in 2017. Like I said, this is more of kind of a hiatus. I don't want to say this is the end of the show because it's not. It's just evolving and I have to figure out how it's evolving in a way that I can feel comfortable and confident that you're still getting good information from me. So I don't want to half-ass it while I try to figure out how my consulting business interacts with my publishing company. I don't want to half-ass it so I would rather provide you with the best of the best previous interviews that I've done in shows that I've done, the top listened shows that I've had, and bring those to your attention for you to listen to present day. And if you have any requests, or any- if you have a topic that you want me to talk about at any point in time, I can jump in and record a new episode for you. So if you're dying and aching and itching for a new episode, don't hesitate to reach out to me because I will happily hop in and do that.                                     If you head over to my website at www.JennTGrace.com/thepodcast, you have access to all 130 episodes so you don't have to wait as I re-release them going into 2017, you can just find any of them at any point in time that anything that is of interest to you. And of course all of this information is on all of my social media channels, so whether it's Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook, I am there and I'm consistently there, so you can certainly find the information there as well. So I'm not disappearing, I'm not going away, I'm still plugging away doing a lot of LGBTQ strategy work, I already have a lot of big contracts in place for 2017, because I don't think I have to tell you this. I think we are all in the same place with the outcome of the presidential election here in the United States, and I think we probably are all- well I don't want to say we're all in agreement, but I'm sure if you're listening to this there's a fair chance that you fully understand what this new presidential situation, how that's going to impact LGBTQ equality. So the work is far from over, we have a ton of work to do, a ton of work to do and I think now more than ever our voices are really important and need to be heard. So my voice, your voice in whatever capacity that's in. So if you've been listening to the show for a while and you're trying to find your voice as it relates to the LGBTQ space, and figure out what your personal brand stands for, I encourage you that now is the time to just get started. You don't have to know exactly what your voice is going to be, just jump into the fray and get going. So if you've been dreaming about starting a podcast, or you've been wanting to start a blog, or you've been wanting to do a video, whatever it is now is the time that your voice needs to be heard. And I really, truly mean that. If you've been dreaming about writing a book, check out the academy, and I'm not saying that in a self-serving way. Genuinely if you're really thinking about now is the time that I need to write this book because I understand that my message is so important to be heard right now. There are so many LGBTQ people who are in unsafe spaces right now, and I think our voices as professionals, as entrepreneurs, as business leaders, now is the time that we really have to be vocal and visible so we can help impact the community any positive way as we are going to hit some really challenging times in the next four years. We all have a responsibility and a duty in many ways to just kind of stand up for the voiceless and get our messages out there. It's going to be challenging, it's going to rough over the next four years, but now is the time to take action. So if you've been thinking about it, I want you to actually really, really truly contemplate whether or not you're going to take action in 2017. And I am always available for a free thirty minute phone call, so if you want to go to www.MeetWithJenn.com you can see my online calendar and we can set up a time to chat quick, and if there is any way that I can help kind of push you over the edge, and push you into figuring out how you're going to start that conversation, how you're going to start your platform whatever that looks like, whether it's starting a podcast, I'm happy to spend thirty minutes with you and just dig deep, brainstorm and just send you in the right direction that's going to help you accomplish your goals. Because ultimately back in episode 82 of this year I specifically talked about how my number one goal is to impact a million people, and I want to impact a million people as it relates to LGBTQ. So if that means I can have a conversation with you, and I can help you impact 1,000 people then I am one step closer to my goal. Or if I can help ten of you impact 1,000 people, that's ten steps closer to my goal and that's ultimately what it's all about. We have to be in this together. It's kind of a- I don't want to be dramatic and say a do-or-die scenario, but it's really going to be a rough road ahead. So if I can hop on a call with you and help kind of square you away and get you started in the right direction, I would be more than happy and honestly honored to help you with that.                                     There are two additional things that I want to at least mention while I have your undivided attention, before I kind of go into a hiatus mode. And one of them is an offering, and it's a new- it's not really a new service, it's really kind of under consulting and business strategy, but I just want to share with you a win that I recently had because you might be working for a corporation who needs this help, or you might know of a corporation who needs this kind of help, and I would be honored to help kind of guide and steward the organization in the right direction. But this is more a little bit about the win that this company that I've been working with just recently had. And I can't say their name because of liability reasons, and nondisclosure agreements, and all that fun stuff that I have signed with them, however the principle applies.                                     So I've been working with this company that is a Fortune 100, and I've been working with them for a couple of years, and they recently hired me back in the spring- or actually winter. They hired me to help them improve their Corporate Equality Index score for the Human Rights Campaign's CEI. If you are unfamiliar with the CEI I encourage you to go to my website, www.JennTGrace.com and search CEI and a lot of information will come up about it; why it's important, how this is beneficial, all that fun stuff. The short of it is that I have been working with this company for over a year because I was working with them in a marketing capacity before I started helping them with their CEI. And when we started this process we officially really began in April, and the Human Rights Campaign needs the survey that really is what the Index is based off of, they need the survey completed by August. So we had from April to August basically to figure out how on earth we were going to take this corporation that had a 10 previously on the CEI, and get them to a respectable level. And going into it in all honesty I thought it was going to be a David and Goliath type of scenario where there is this group of dedicated people who are really amazing, really awesome, who want to gain LGBTQ equality for their employees, for their coworkers, and I thought it was going to be them versus kind of the corporate board of directors, the people who are out of touch. I had like this very specific impression in my mind of how this was going to play out. I do always enjoy a challenge, and just because there might be a disconnect between the people on the ground, in the weeds, just because there's a disconnect between them and maybe the executives, that doesn't mean that there isn't a path to success in my opinion.                                     So I had this impression that it was going to be really, really hard to create change. Again change happens in business. I thought it was going to be really tough, and I cannot begin to explain to you how pleasantly surprised I was that while it was still tough work in order of getting all of the policies and kind of just the logistics in place, this corporation went from a 10 to a 90. And the new 2017 CEI was released in November, so just a month ago from the time that you're listening to this, and I'm so, so pleased to see that they have a 90 now on the Corporate Equality Index. This is a corporation that has like 17,000 employees so having sexual orientation, and gender identity, and gender expression, and all of those necessary things- transgender healthcare benefits, all of those necessary things in place for those 17,000 employees is amazing. Because while yes the LGBT community is representing like less than 4% of the population, so 4% of those 17,000 employees are going to be directly impacted by this corporation taking that awesome next step into having full equality in their workplace for their people. I feel like this is amazing, I'm so excited and so proud of them. I really look forward to engaging with them again in 2017 to help them get to 100. My real goal is on the 2018 CEI, this company has 100%. So they would have gone from a 10 to 100 in two years' time. And I think any company is capable of this if they have the right people, and the right leadership to say, 'Let's do this, let's get this done' basically. And in this particular instance, this corporation, they had the buy-in from senior level executives, they had the buy-in from the CEO, and they had all of the autonomy and authority to get this done, which I think is entirely why they were so successful in doing this because there was that top-down agreement of, 'This is something that's important to our organization, and we are going to do this.' I was privy to an email that an LGBTQ person within this company sent to the CEO, and I was able to see it and it was just a very simple, 'Thank you. I'm proud to be an employee of this company.'                                     So there's a huge impact that can be made. So if you're working for a corporation that you know is not doing well on the CEI, there is total hope for you. Total hope, and if you are interested and want me to have a conversation with your, or with them, or anybody, I'd be more than happy to do that. I found out of everything that I worked on in 2016 in addition- or other than to the working with my authors on the publishing side, if I look at all of the LGBTQ projects that I worked on in 2016, this was hands down one of the best because every time we got a little bit closer to a better score, it was just a huge sense of victory. And I've been behind the scenes, out of sight. This company and the people within it are all the true champions, I just gave them the guidance and kind of the general direction of like, 'This is what we have to do, this is who you have to talk to,' and all that. But they made it happen and now they're positioning themselves as a market leader, and they can attract LGBTQ employees and top talent because they have protections that those employees are looking for. So this was such a rewarding- and such an interesting way, just such a rewarding project to have worked on, especially if we look at my business. It's very much kind of equally- I think it's equally behind the scenes versus equally on a stage speaking. This was straight up behind the scenes and I loved every minute of it, and the people who work for this company- the marketing people, HR, everyone, they're just really genuine, and sincere, and authentic people, and it's just been seriously amazing. So I'm so proud of them to have a 90%. If at any point in time I can tell you who they are, I'd be more than happy to because they are amazing and I would love for you to do business with them. But for now I shall keep their name.                                     Although that leads into the second thing that I wanted to tell you. I am working on my next book, and it should be out in 2017- in winter of 2017 is what my hope is, and I'm hoping that I can possibly name this company by name in the book, I'm working on trying to figure out how I will do that now. But this is- and I screw up the number every time I say it, it'll either be my third book or my fourth book. I can't quite determine which one it is.                                     You may even wonder how on earth I could possibly not know how many books I've written, and the reality is that I have written two print books. So it's the first book which was 'But You Don't Look Gay: The Six Steps to Creating an LGBT Marketing Strategy.' And then I wrote my second book which was 'No Wait, You Do Look Gay: The Seven Mistakes Preventing You from Selling to the $830 Billion LGBT Market.' And then I wrote a third book that is not in print, it is only an electronic version. So I never know if I'm going to count that one as a book or not, and that book is 'Marriage Equality Marketing: Five Questions You Must Ask to Sell to the $884 Billion LGBT Market.' So because that one is not in print I always- sometimes I want to include it as a third book, sometimes I don't. Either way those are the three I've written. The 'Marriage Equality Marketing' book is free, it's completely free on my website if you go to www.JennTGrace.com, a popup will pop up in your face and ask you if you'd like to download it, and there's information about it in a couple of different places.                                     So I highly encourage you to at the very least go get that book for free, but I am working on- we'll call it my fourth for the sake of this discussion. So I am working on my fourth book, as I mentioned I'm hoping that it will be out in winter of 2017. My goal is for it to be out probably in late January, maybe early mid-February. It's a little bit tricky right now trying to figure out the editing process, and I'm in the throes of it right now just editing it. So it's nine chapters as it stands at this very moment, and I'm in the process of editing chapter eight, so I'm almost there. And then I have to figure out all the other fun logistics of who's going to write the forward, and testimonials, and all of that fun stuff that goes with writing a book.                                     This book is a little bit different than the others. If we look at the other three books, they've all been a little bit of a hybrid of LGBTQ audience and straight ally audience. My audience this entire time I've been doing this, which goes back to- at least this iteration of my business, to 2012. And if I look at my experience in the LGBTQ space, generally speaking that goes back to 2006, but this entire time I've spent a lot of time equally focused on helping allies reach the community and then helping people within the community just be better at marketing themselves. And this book is different, it's really different, and the reason is it is designed purely for allies. Just for allies. I have never done anything that is only intended for allies. Any LGBTQ person could pick it up, of course you could learn from it, there's always something I think that can be learned, but this is very much communications based. There is no- we're not talking about marketing necessarily, it's very much how to get into the mind of an LGBT customer, and how to make sure that you're authentically approaching the market. So it is in a large, large part very much what I've been preaching and talking about for the last four years on this podcast, and in my blog, but it's written in a very different way. It is really a book designed to be a cheerleader for an ally who genuinely wants to reach our community in a way that is true to them, that's going to serve us well, and that it really is a win-win situation. It really is kind of a champion, and it's a cheerleader helping that ally kind of get through these mental blocks, and help them understand why we're using the stereotypes that we're using, or why people are covering their identity, or all of these very emotional things, very psychological things. I'm really excited with how the book is turning out. When I first started this, and I started the re-write really officially back in the end of October, and my original intent to be honest with you was to take the first two books that I've done, and just kind of blend them together and create like a new updated version of that, that was really almost I would say 80% the same content. And when I did that, I just didn't like the way it felt. I feel like it wasn't the book that was needed in the marketplace if you will. And I started writing it before the election, so I started writing it in the end of October, the election was the second week of November, and yeah everything just kind of blew up in a not so pleasant way. So I had written the first draft basically before the election, and when I went back to edit that first draft, it just was kind of like, 'Oh hell no this is not going to work anymore.' The election has changed- I don't want to be so dramatic, but the election has changed everything in my mind. It's been a complete and utter game changer. So when I went back and looked through it I was like, 'Nope this is not the book that needs to be written,' and I just kind of scrapped a lot of what I had written, I deleted a ton of information. So the first three books that I have that exist, all of that is still kind of minding its business. This next book will have very little overlap, if any overlap to those other books. If anything I'm just kind of referencing, 'This is covered in the first book. Feel free to go get your copy here' type of stuff. But I think the election has changed a lot, and I'm hoping that this is the book that an ally who's like, 'I need to be an ally,' or someone who doesn't even know that they're an ally yet, but they're like, 'I know I need to help the LGBT community right now. I know I have to, how do I do that? I need the manual.' So this is kind of the manual to help people reach the LGBT community.                                     So I do look forward to having that available in February or so. As I get that information up on my website it will be there, so www.JennTGrace.com. The information will be there. I am looking for people to be book ambassadors which basically I will be giving you kind of a free preview, a free copy in exchange for helping me promote the book during the launch. And again, I don't know when the launch will be, I'm guessing probably somewhere in February is my best guess, and I will need people to help me kind of promote it and make sure that it makes sense within particular audiences. And again it's designed for the straight ally but an LGBTQ person could pick it up and absolutely learn from it. There's definitely stuff to be learned from, but it's really written to a straight person who means well and wants to do the right thing and just needs that guidance and kind of a support system there to tell them that when they do something it's not the end of the world, and here's how to counteract what you've done, and all that kind of great stuff.                                     That was a mouthful. I fully understand that it was a lot of information that I've just thrown out at you, and I did so in a not 100% cohesive way. I think I bounced around a little bit, but that kind of sums up this final episode of 2016 and we will speak again in 2017, I'm just not 100% when that is. So I do hope that you enjoy going back in time listening to some of the amazing old archives that I have pulled out for at least the first couple of months of 2017. So keep in touch with me, keep telling me what's going on. If you want to be a book ambassador please reach out. I've also redone my entire email series, so if you join my mailing list I have redone it in a way that it is super, super educational. It always has been but I went back and just redid it so there's a lot more intent behind it. So and the intent there is to help educate you, it's not trying to sell you on things, it's really just focused on how do I take the 500+ blog posts and podcasts collectively that I have, how do I make sure that I'm giving that information to you in a way that logically makes sense? Rather than just telling you to go to my website and just start looking around. You could be looking around for weeks and still not cover all of the information that's there. So the new email is really just designed to help specifically and strategically guide you in the right direction to enhance your business, enhance your personal brand, all of that great stuff.                                     With that being said, again this is not a final goodbye, but this is a goodbye, we're on hiatus for a little bit. If you're interested, check out my website, www.JennTGrace.com. If interested check out www.PurposeDrivenPublishing.com or www.PurposeDrivenAuthorsAcademy.com. All of those places I will be there, and again www.MeetWithJenn.com will bring you to my online scheduling calendar, and I'd be honestly happy to help kind of brainstorm and kickstart you in the right direction. So if you would like to talk to me please do so.                                     With that being said I so appreciate your listenership for these last four years, I hope the end of 2016 has been good for you, and I hope 2017 kicks some serious ass, and we will talk again very soon. Have a great New Year.                                     Thank you for listening to today's podcast. If there are any links from today's show that you are interested in finding, save yourself a step and head on over to www.JennTGrace.com/thepodcast. And there you will find a backlog of all of the past podcast episodes including transcripts, links to articles, reviews, books, you name it. It is all there on the website for your convenience. Additionally if you would like to get in touch with me for any reason, you can head on over to the website and click the contact form, send me a message, you can find me on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter all at JennTGrace. And as always I really appreciate you as a listener, and I highly encourage you to reach out to me whenever you can. Have a great one, and I will talk to you in the next episode.  

Corporate America is more or less known for distrust, employee mistreatment, and lack of ethics, to say the least. What if two men could create harmony between management and union workers as they generate profitability? Such was the case with the most unlikely duo, Bob Catell a luminary in the energy industry and Kenny Moore, a former Catholic Monk who tell their story of success in the best-selling book, The CEO and The Monk. It is the story of KeySpan, the nation's 5th largest energy giant and a profitable, Fortune 500 company and their simple belief in opting to "do the right thing." Before it was bought out by NationalGrid in February 2006, KeySpan received a 100% rating on the Corporate Equality Index released by the Human Rights Campaign starting in 2004, the third year of the report. The Human Rights Campaigns priorities include: prevention of hate crimes and HIV/AIDS; advocacy for healthcare benefits, marriage, and adoption rights for same-sex couples; lobbying for a federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act and gender identity anti-discrimination laws; combating gay bashing in schools; and building relationships with straight allies, ethnic groups, religious leaders, and youth. In this segment of The Clean Energy View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer talks to Robert Catell who was formerly the Chairman and CEO of KeySpan Corporation and KeySpan Energy Delivery, the former Brooklyn Union Gas. Following National Grid's acquisition of KeySpan Corporation, Mr. Catell became Chairman of National Grid, U.S. and Deputy Chairman of National Grid plc. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of the Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center at Stony Brook University, NYS Smart Grid Consortium, Cristo Rey Brooklyn High School, Futures in Education Endowment Fund and the NY Energy Policy Institute's Advisory Council. 

Hey all - this episode is a re-airing of episode 53, so if you already heard episode 53, come back for a new episode in episode 74! In today's episode I cover a few topics. The first is I answer a listener question about what to do when you don't feel comfortable networking in an LGBT environment. The second is I do a deep dive into what the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Corporate Equality Index is. I also review an article shared with me by a Facebook fan, who wanted to hear my personal opinion on the HRC. With the HRC it is usually a love em' or hate em' scenario. I share why I see such a significant importance in the Corporate Equality Index specifically and of course, share how I really feel about the HRC. This is an episode you've been waiting for. And now that I'm back from jury duty I have time to the deep dive you've been asking for! Speaking of jury duty, next week's blog post is going to share the 4 lessons I learned by being a juror on a murder trial - you won't want to miss that post - so come back next week!  

Links mentioned in today's episode: Corporate Equality Index Buying for Workplace Equality 2013 The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference Human Rights Campaign Listen to the episode by clicking the play button below! Would you prefer to read the transcript rather than listen to the episode? No problem! Read the transcript below! AUDIO TITLE:  Liz Cooper Interview for “30 Days – 30 Voices – Stories from America’s LGBT Business Leaders” Jenn T Grace: Welcome to 30 Days, 30 Voices: Stories from America's LGBT business leaders. Intro: You are listening to a special edition of the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast. Tune in for the next thirty days as we interview one business leader per day each day in June to celebrate LGBT Pride Month. That's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender pride month. You'll learn insights around business and marketing from those who know it best. And now, your host. She's an entrepreneur, a marketing maven, and an advocate for the LGBT business community - Jenn, with two N's, T. Grace. Jenn T Grace: Hello and welcome. Thank you for tuning in to this special Pride Month episode of the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast. Information about today's guest and links mentioned in the show will be available on the website at www.JennTGrace.com/30days-30voices. If you like what you hear in this interview, please be sure to tell a friend. And now, without further ado, let's dive into the interview. I am delighted to be talking with Liz Cooper today, who is the manager of Corporate Programs for the Workplace Project at the Human Rights Campaign. She is the go-to gal for all things regarding the Corporate Equality Index which does come up a great deal on this podcast. So Liz, I've given the listeners just a really high-level highlight of your most recent work, but why don't you tell the audience a little bit more about yourself and what your path looked like that led you to where you are today. Liz Cooper: Absolutely, so thanks so much for having me. I'm Liz Cooper as Jenn mentioned, manager at Corporate Programs at the Human Rights Campaign. I've been here just about three years now and so for folks who are not familiar with the Human Rights Campaign, we're the organization that goes along the blue and yellow equal sign. We're the largest civil rights organization working for LGBT equality in the US and I've been with HRC just about three years. And the project that I work on, the Workplace Project, deals with how companies are ensuring the safety, inclusive policies, benefits, protections for their LGBT employees. And as Jenn mentioned, the main mechanism that we measure and evaluate, the status of LGBT equality in the workplace, is through the Corporate Equality Index. So the CEI has been around for over ten years now, and it was really- and not to be too corny but an honor to inherit such a well-established and respected project when I came along on board with the team. So the CEI is a very objective measure of LGBT equality in the workplace. It doesn't account for employee surveys or their perception of their own personal experience with the company. It really is, 'Do you have these inclusive policies in place or do you not? Do you have these benefits for your LGBT employees or do you not?' So it's a really great objective measure and while it's also reporting out on the status of LGBT equality in these major US employers, our main focus is for those employers with 500 or more full-time employees; so we're talking about the big guys. But it's not just a report out, it's also a roadmap for folks who might now be scoring that well, might not have the most inclusive policies on the books. But we're here to help folks get there. We don't want to shame companies or make them feel bad about not being the best they can be,

In today's episode I cover a few topics. The first is I answer a listener question about what to do when you don't feel comfortable networking in an LGBT environment. The second is I do a deep dive into what the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Corporate Equality Index is. I also review an article shared with me by a Facebook fan, who wanted to hear my personal opinion on the HRC. With the HRC it is usually a love em' or hate em' scenario. I share why I see such a significant importance in the Corporate Equality Index specifically and of course, share how I really feel about the HRC. This is an episode you've been waiting for. And now that I'm back from jury duty I have time to the deep dive you've been asking for! Speaking of jury duty, next week's blog post is going to share the 4 lessons I learned by being a juror on a murder trial - you won't want to miss that post - so come back next week! Links mentioned in the episode: Corporate Equality Index | Human Rights Campaign Food Dive  Homonormativity 101: What It Is and How It's Hurting Our Movement  Out Now Global  015: Tables are Turned - Paul Collanton interviews Jenn! [Podcast] Listen to the podcast by clicking the play button below! Would you prefer to read the transcript than listen to the podcast? No problem! Read the transcript below!   AUDIO TITLE:  Episode #53 – HRC Corporate Equality Index Jenn T Grace: You are listening to the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast, Episode 53. Intro: Welcome to the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast where you'll learn how to do business with and market to the LGBT community in an authentic and transparent way. We're talking about the $790 billion lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender community. We'll help you grow your business, gain market share and impact your bottom line. And now your host - she's an entrepreneur, a marketing maven and an advocate for the LGBT business community. Jenn, with two N's, T. Grace. Hello and welcome! Well hello and welcome to episode number 53 of the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast. I am your host, Jenn Grace, and I have a very content-filled episode for you today; I'm pretty excited about having the time to actually get this episode done. I've been talking about it and delaying it a couple of times. But today we are going to talk about the Human Rights Campaign and their Corporate Equality Index. There will be lots of information shared in addition to a couple of areas of just my own personal opinion about the organization based on a request from somebody that is a fan on Facebook and somebody that I know. So I want to address a question of hers. In addition I want to talk about kind of an overview of what the Corporate Equality Index is, because you may not have any idea what it is. So I want to share that a little bit. I also am going to reply, in audio format, to a question I received from somebody that was on my webinar last month. So I want to have an opportunity to respond to this because it's a longer question, and I just didn't have enough time to actually type a really thoughtful response. But, also in looking at her question I feel like it's something that you may also feel or have a similar question around. So it can help you at the same time. What's in store for today's episode! So that's basically that in terms of what we are going to cover in today's episode. As I am recording this I'm going to apologize in advance for perhaps some rustling sounds or- I don't even know what kind of noise this would make in the microphone. But I am wrapped up in a blanket as I am recording this, and I have big, fluffy slippers on. Because it is one degree outside right now. It is- as I'm recording this it's about 8:00 in the morning, so one degree is actually warmer than it has been overnight. But it's very cold.

Today's podcast episode is meant as a pre-cursor to the next episode! Each year the Human Rights Campaign puts out their Corporate Equality Index (CEI) which is something I absolutely swear by. This index helps me understand what companies are doing good for the LGBT community and what companies are not. In episode #52 of the podcast I will be doing a recap of the 2015 HRC CEI. But before doing that I wanted to first give you an idea of who the HRC is and what they do through the eyes of one their own - Liz Cooper, manager of the Workplace Project. I hope you enjoy! Links mentioned in today's episode: Corporate Equality Index Buying for Workplace Equality 2013 The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference Human Rights Campaign Listen to the episode by clicking the play button below! Would you prefer to read the transcript rather than listen to the episode? No problem! Read the transcript below! AUDIO TITLE:  Episode 51 – Who is the Human Rights Campaign, and How Does this Help your Business? Jenn T Grace: Welcome to 30 Days, 30 Voices: Stories from America's LGBT business leaders. Intro: You are listening to a special edition of the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast. Tune in for the next thirty days as we interview one business leader per day each day in June to celebrate LGBT Pride Month. That's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender pride month. You'll learn insights around business and marketing from those who know it best. And now, your host. She's an entrepreneur, a marketing maven, and an advocate for the LGBT business community - Jenn, with two N's, T. Grace. Hello and welcome... Hello and welcome. Thank you for tuning in to this special Pride Month episode of the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast. Information about today's guest and links mentioned in the show will be available on the website at www.JennTGrace.com/30days-30voices. If you like what you hear in this interview, please be sure to tell a friend. And now, without further ado, let's dive into the interview. I am delighted to be talking with Liz Cooper today, who is the manager of Corporate Programs for the Workplace Project at the Human Rights Campaign. She is the go-to gal for all things regarding the Corporate Equality Index which does come up a great deal on this podcast. So Liz, I've given the listeners just a really high-level highlight of your most recent work, but why don't you tell the audience a little bit more about yourself and what your path looked like that led you to where you are today. Liz Cooper: Absolutely, so thanks so much for having me. I'm Liz Cooper as Jenn mentioned, manager at Corporate Programs at the Human Rights Campaign. I've been here just about three years now and so for folks who are not familiar with the Human Rights Campaign, we're the organization that goes along the blue and yellow equal sign. We're the largest civil rights organization working for LGBT equality in the US and I've been with HRC just about three years. And the project that I work on, the Workplace Project, deals with how companies are ensuring the safety, inclusive policies, benefits, protections for their LGBT employees. And as Jenn mentioned, the main mechanism that we measure and evaluate, the status of LGBT equality in the workplace, is through the Corporate Equality Index. So the CEI has been around for over ten years now, and it was really- and not to be too corny but an honor to inherit such a well-established and respected project when I came along on board with the team. So the CEI is a very objective measure of LGBT equality in the workplace. It doesn't account for employee surveys or their perception of their own personal experience with the company. It really is, 'Do you have these inclusive policies in place or do you not? Do you have these benefits for your LGBT employees or do you not?

Today's podcast addresses specifically how to be an ally to a community you are not necessarily a part of. I train LGBT allies on a daily basis and successfully I might add. ;-) But I had an epiphany recently. How does one enter the world of being an ally where they don't know where to start? I talk about this as it relates to LGBT allies but it wasn't until recent where I've been struggling to find my way as an ally to the black community that it truly hit me with how intimidating and daunting this can be. Allies are critical to any group of people and the concepts are universal. In this episode you'll hear my struggles of what an ally means to me and how I am trying to be a better ally to a community that I am not a part of - and how you can be too! Enjoy listening and as always, I would truly love to hear your thoughts on this. Links mentioned in today's podcast: Corporate Equality Index Blog Post: Resources Resources for Questioning Youth Visit my Homepage here for the Hartford Courant article!   Listen to the episode by clicking the play button below!   Would you prefer to read the transcript than listen to the episode? No problem! Read the transcript below. AUDIO TITLE: Episode #48 – How to Be an Ally to a Community You Don’t Belong To You are listening to the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast, Episode 48. Welcome! Welcome to the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast where you'll learn how to do business with and market to the LGBT community in an authentic and transparent way. We're talking about the $790 billion lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender community. We'll help you grow your business, gain market share and impact your bottom line. And now your host - she's an entrepreneur, a marketing maven and an advocate for the LGBT business community. Jenn, with two N's, T. Grace. What's on the agenda for today.. Well hello and welcome to Episode Number 48 of the Gay Business and Marketing Made Easy Podcast. I am your host, Jenn Grace, and we are in December 2014 and I just want to say Happy Holidays to those of you celebrating holidays during this lovely time of year. And I have a- I almost feel like I might end up just going completely rogue from what I had planned for today's episode airing on December 11, 2014. I have a whole list of things that ideally I would like to cover in today's episode but there's just a couple of things that are on my mind that are weighing me down significantly and I feel like I have a trusting audience, and I feel like it might not be a bad idea to share with you a couple of those things. So I will end up I think, covering a couple of the things that I wanted to actually cover in today's episode, I have some information on a recent article that went out about my business, I have some updates on book number three that I've been kind of been teasing in my social media. I wanted to touch base on the CEI, which is the Corporate Equality Index put out by the Human Rights Campaign, and in that I wanted to update you specifically on Barilla Pasta. If you recall I did an episode awhile ago which I will include in today's show notes, that you can go back and take a listen to, and I've also talked about Barilla on webinars of mine in the past about what PR tragedy they had in September of 2013 and I have some interesting updates on their progress, which is kind of interesting. And then I wanted to share a touching note that I received from someone who is just kind of following my stuff, and it's kind of one of those warm and friendly types of things. #blacklivesmatter.. So that was basically what I had on my agenda to talk with you today, and while it might seem like a long, lengthy list, they all kind of ducktail into one another so it's not really that bad. However I do feel the need to go rogue and address what is happening in present day, December 2014,