Out Front

After a somewhat self-imposed hiatus, it feels fantastic to be back to blogging for the newly redesigned Out Front blog. As regular readers of this blog, you may know that my main focus is on ally communications – how straight allies can support our LGBT counterparts by helping to advocate for equal rights and fair treatment for the LGBT community.

With more than seven million copies sold of her personal journey memoir Eat, Pray, Love and a movie adaptation out this summer (in which she’s portrayed by the seemingly ageless Julia Roberts), one could say that novelist Elizabeth Gilbert’s having a pretty good run. Unfortunately, Gilbert’s Brazilian paramour (Felipe, in the novel) was denied entrance to the U.S. after one too many trips, and the two were told they’d need to marry in order for him to re-enter the country. While Gilbert was ultimately able to marry her partner, she became aware of the sad fact that gay and lesbian Americans who fall in love overseas cannot bring their loved ones to the U.S. using the same means that were available to her.

Based on Gilbert’s own experiences with U.S. immigration laws, she became a vocal supporter of the Immigration Equality Action Fund, an organization dedicated to helping LGBT immigrant families. On September 30th, Gilbert will journey to Washington, D.C. to lobby on behalf of the Uniting American Families Act, which would give the foreign born, same-sex partners of American citizens the same rights currently enjoyed by straight couples in a similar situation.

A few facts about LGBT Binational Couples:

• An estimated 36,000 LGBT binational couples are facing imminent separation or already living in exile
• Nearly half — 47% — of LGBT binational couples are raising minor children
• Forty-five percent (45%) of binational families include a Latino/a partner
• In 79% of binational families, the non-citizen partner is from a country that doesn’t provide immigration benefits to these couples, meaning neither partner is able to sponsor the other for immigration in their home countries

Yes, same-sex immigration equality has implications outside LGBT parity (see: Arizona) but it’s also an example of how one government is representing itself in the ongoing debate regarding LGBT issues and communications. At a time when the United States has made strides (see: California Prop 8) in the LGBT fight for equality, this country still lags behind more than 20 countries worldwide that recognize same-sex couples in a permanent relationship for immigration purposes – including Brazil, where this has been legal since 2003.

Equality not-withstanding (and let’s forget about love for a moment) – if allowed to become permanent members of the U.S. LGBT community, these 36,000 couples could:

• Add to the $47.3 billion travel market for American gays and lesbians, which is about 10 percent of the U.S. travel industry
• Amplify the $743 billion LGBT consumer market
• Potentially add to the more than $70 billion dollar wedding industry in the United States.

Even as a staunch ally, I was not aware of the issues surrounding same-sex binational couples. While it may not be at the forefront of our minds like DADT or Prop 8, we must remember to not only pay attention to but get informed and communicate about all the issues surrounding the fight for LGBT equality. I won’t even try to pretend that I have a satisfactory solution to the immigration issue, but as LGBT communicators, we need to include LGBT binationals in our conversations.  The only way we can truly achieve equality is to get informed, get involved and communicate.

Gay weddings in Mexico City did not take place overnight. 2007 marked the start of one of the most significant steps towards the recognition of civil rights for minorities, with the approval of the Domestic Partnership Law, conferring legal recognition to those households made up of persons not related by blood or affinity. This legislation considers and establishes certain rights and obligations for the members of the partnership, which before its creation, many families were painfully lacking. Several rights were established, including the right to inherit (legitimate intestamentary succession), subrogation of rental agreements, to receive food in situations deemed as necessary, and to have legitimate guardianship of children. In other words, this legislation was applicable to a great variety of partnerships, including same sex unions.     

Later, and after the reforms to the Mexico City civil codes, the law came into effect in March 2010, per instruction of Mexico City’s head of government, Marcelo Ebrard.

Marcelo Ebrard, Mexico’s City Mayor (Courtesy of Reforma Newspaper and www.ebrard-para-presidente.com/)

Mexico City became the 14th jurisdiction in the world legalizing gay marriage. Other locations include the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada, Sweden, Norway, and a handful of states in the US, including Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Iowa.

Yet not all is peachy keen, now the debate is centered on a fierce fight with the Catholic Church, who has openly declared against gay marriage. Guadalajara’s Cardinal, Juan Sandoval Iñiguez has openly made declarations to local media with phrases and ideas that are frankly quite discriminatory against the LGBT community, having gone as far as comparing this legislation to the moral damage that drug trafficking is causing throughout the nation. And he hasn’t laid the issue to rest there, the Cardinal has gone on to say that Mexico’s Supreme Court Justices are corrupt, and have received money from the Mexico City head of government to support gay marriage and adoptions among same sex couples. Separately, Marcelo Ebrard hasn’t thought twice about responding, opening a civil lawsuit against the cardinal for slander. 

So by no means can we say that it’s gone well, but it’s never really been smooth sailing for our community. This battle started in Mexico back in 2001, and the work of Representative Enoé Uranga, the daughter of revolutionaries, is very much worth highlighting. Her work has been quite fruitful, first as an independent legislator and now as member of the PRD (Partido de la Revolución Democrática) political party, which happens to be the same one that Marcelo Ebrard is affiliated with, and one that has enabled significant changes for Mexico’s LGBT community, alongside many brave men and women. Analyzing this case study in Mexico, it seems that there is a clear opportunity to direct communication programs to endorse LGBT NGO’s voices and counsel the local government on how to position a positive visibility nationwide regarding their efforts to fortify human rights.

I believe these are times of hopeful change, and it is necessary to look back to see how far we’ve come, recognizing the work of many generations in the LGBT community throughout the world who have made it possible for us to inherit the world we now live in. It is now up to us to continue working towards a fair and happy society for generations to come.

Image provided by www.nutwork.com.au

Hello everyone! Before anything, I just want to say that it is an absolute honor to be a part of the OutFront Blog and I look forward to sharing with you my unique perspective on how today’s LGBT communities are being effectively reached by some of the worlds most notable brands and organizations. Today I would love to focus on a question posed to me yesterday that really got me thinking, “with an increase in overall acceptance of the LGBT community, does the world still need initiatives that specifically target them?”

While today’s youth are certainly not the same as yesteryears and every day societies around the world are becoming more accepting, does homophobia, in its ugliest form still exist? The answer is yes. Not only does discrimination continues to exist in countries like Iran,  where the LGBT community must live in fear of being sentenced to the death penalty, but here in our own country as well. And when businesses are involved, the repercussions are just as detrimental to a brand as the conflict they are supporting.

We have previously discussed the challenge that Target is facing with gay equality advocates across the board currently boycotting the franchise. In fact, Edge Magazine blogger Barbara Farfan wrote in an Aug. 24 About.com posting that both Target and Best Buy (who also supported the same candidate) are now at risk of losing a substantial amount of money by underestimating the purchasing power of the LGBT community (which is currently estimated at more than $750 billion). Not to mention, the companies now have to accept the loss of any support they had previously had from the Human Rights Campaign, America’s largest LGBT advocacy group boasting more than 750,000 members, as well.

While many brands have previously ignored, and continue to ignore, the potential in reaching out to this segment of society, there are, however, an increasing amount that are now seeing the benefits of appealing to the community. In fact, according to Jeff Garber in an article from The BrandChannel, “there are approximately 22 to 30 million gay, lesbian, bisexuals and transgendered people in the United States alone. And that is a considerable market share that lacks attention from many brands.” Orbitz, Subaru and Absolut Vodka, for example, have been targeting the gay community for years now and in the end are more than happy to admit that it’s had nothing less than a positive outcome for them all with an increase in traffic, loyal customers, and a better overall business. 

So, does the world still need initiatives that specifically target the LGBT community? The answer lies in whether or not you want to improve your overall brand image and business entirely.

There’s no such thing as a coincidence. Today, several significant moments come together: for one, we are at a new phase with our very well-received blog, FH Out Front, secondly, I find myself starting off as a proud and happy contributor for it, and finally, we have very important news to share with everyone regarding the considerable ground that has been gained in terms of civil rights for Latin America’s LGBT community, and the especially interesting case of Mexico.
Allow me to offer some background information on myself. My name is Vera González, I am Mexican, I am gay, and I am the Healthcare, Nutrition & Lifestyle Practice Vice President for Fleishman Hillard’s Mexico office. I joined the Firm five years ago, and it’s worth noting that this is my second tenure with the office, because I first joined FH sometime back in 2000. I am a nutritionist and I hold a Bachelor’s degree in nutrition from Mexico City’s Universidad Iberoamericana and completed post-graduate studies in this field in London. However it’s safe to say that what I know regarding PR, I learned mainly at FH.
It was the tremendous power of communications, as well as the notion of being able to shift perceptions and educate audiences, that gave me a whole new perspective on what to do with my life, and I decided that I would work in my field taking on a non traditional approach – one that would take me beyond the medical office or perhaps even a hospital, using communications strategies instead to promote a healthier lifestyle precisely through our clients.
Through my collaborations, I’ll be discussing some of the most relevant issues affecting our community from the Latin American perspective, particularly, the Mexican point of view.
Now, would you allow me to give you a preview of what you can expect? As it turns out Mexico is elegantly and decidedly coming out of the closet onto a global stage, in what is in fact, a surprise for many. On August 10, the country’s Supreme Court resolved a potential unconstitutionality conflict and upheld the endorsement of gay marriage in Mexico City! And the good news doesn’t end there. Just some days ago, this very same Mexican high court declared a separate trial as unfounded, one that was being promoted in a second intent by the country’s Attorney General Arturo Chávez, (a member of the conservative and incumbent PAN (Partido Acción Nacional political party). His initiative was to deny adoption rights to same sex couples, legislation which had in fact been approved for months in Mexico City. What finally happened was that once again, the high court upheld their decision.

Gay Flag and The Angel of Independence, an iconic monument in Mexico City (Courtesy of SXC)

These are all tremendously relevant facts opening hopeful doors and setting up great expectations for the LGBT community in Mexico. These are also facts, which I personally hope will resound throughout the world. Separately, but also along these lines, they represent great premises in terms of marketing. Given the new-found openness, one stands to believe that many brands who used to draw a line in their communications towards the LGBT community, might now in fact take on a broader perspective.  
And so, we are living in exciting times!! And even better ones lie ahead!! Please stay tuned,
We’ll be in contact again very soon! Hasta la vista!!