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With a busy week behind you and the weekend within reach, there’s no shame in taking things a bit easy on Friday afternoon. With this in mind, every Friday TriplePundit will give you a fun, easy read on a topic you care about. So, take a break from those endless email threads, and spend five minutes catching up on the latest trends in sustainability and business.
As marriage equality legislation makes its way through courtrooms across the country, it's clear that equality will soon be the norm rather than the exception. While some companies still hang on walls of shame across the blogosphere for their persistent opposition to LGBT equality, an ever-growing list of forward-thinking firms are turning up the volume in their support for diversity.
The company also started the Nike Equality PAC to support same-sex marriage in Oregon last fall, which included $100,000 in up-front capital from the company and an additional $180,000 from its executives.
"Levi’s has always been a tremendous voice for equality," HRC President Joe Solmonese said in a 2012 press release. "From ensuring fairness in California by rallying business opposition to Proposition 8, publicly supporting marriage equality in New York with specialty-designed storefront windows and scoring a 100 percent on HRC’s Corporate Equality Index, Levi’s has been a long-standing and ardent supporter of marriage equality."
The company also isn't afraid to go public with its support for the LGBT community. In 2012, it launched its Legalize Love campaign to support LGBT rights around the world. It has also changed its iconic search bar to rainbow colors on many occasions -- perhaps most famously during the 2014 Sochi Olympic Winter Games, in protest of Russia’s anti-gay legislation.
The coffee giant's corporate leadership discussed its support for same-sex marriage at a 2012 shareholder meeting, resulting in a boycott by the National Organization for Marriage. A year later, an angry shareholder addressed the company’s annual meeting, blaming the company’s political position for its less-than-stellar earnings in the quarter after the campaign. In response, Starbucks Chairman and Chief Executive Howard Schultz said, “Not every decision is an economic decision … We employ over 200,000 people in this company, and we want to embrace diversity. Of all kinds.”
Apple is also well known for its workplace diversity and boasts a perfect score in the HRC's Buyers Guide and Corporate Equality Index.
For even more companies that stand for equality, check out the HRC's Buyers Guide and Corporate Equality Index online.
Image credits: 1) Flickr/heatherclot 2) Human Rights Campaign 3) Screenshot of Google homepage (taken by Mary Mazzoni on Feb. 7, 2014)
Based in Philadelphia, Mary Mazzoni is a senior editor at TriplePundit. She is also a freelance journalist who frequently writes about sustainability, corporate social responsibility and clean tech. Her work has appeared in the Philadelphia Daily News, the Huffington Post, Sustainable Brands, Earth911 and the Daily Meal. You can follow her on Twitter @mary_mazzoni.
Mary Mazzoni has reported on sustainability in business for over a decade and now serves as managing editor of TriplePundit. She is also the general manager of TriplePundit's Brand Studio, which has worked with dozens of brands and organizations on sustainability storytelling. Along with 3p, Mary's recent work can be found in publications like Conscious Company, Salon and Vice's Motherboard. She also works with nonprofits on media projects, including the women's entrepreneurship coaching organization Street Business School. She is an alumna of Temple University in Philadelphia and lives in the city with her partner and two spoiled dogs.