In which Joanne encounters an unexpected moral dilemma

So here's an interesting conundrum: 

As a card-carrying Net Impact member and social enterprise/CSR junkie, I believe in incorporating one's values and ethics into the way one does business.  Bill Marriott disagrees. He checks his values at the door, which means, ironically enough, that his hotel chain sides with me on marriage equality:

"In an interview last year with Business Insider, Bill Marriott explained that he personally believed that marriage was between a man and a woman. But he said he does not mix his views on the subject with operation of the business.

'We have to take care of our people, regardless of their sexual orientation or anything else,' Bill Marriott said. 'We have all the American values: the values of hard work, the values of integrity, the values of fairness and respect.'

He further pointed out, 'Our church is very much opposed to alcohol and we're probably one of the biggest sales engines of liquor in the United States. I don't drink. We serve a lot of liquor.'"

Well, crap. Do I applaud the guy because his corporate stance aligns with my politics, or disagree with him for not using business as a force for (his version of) good in the world?

A good day for human rights in America

I teared up a lil bit reading this article today.

In 2008, I watched the numbers come in for Obama at 7am from a consulate gathering in India.  After swelling with pride for my country for the first time in my voting-age life and taking a few euphoric calls from Kenya, I called home to express my excitement.

The tone of my mother's voice when she picked up the phone took the wind completely out of my sails: she said she couldn't be truly happy about the victory because California's Prop 8 had passed the same day.  Coming from a woman brought up in the '50s in a Catholic household in Westchester, not her California-raised hippie liberal daughter, this sentiment reminded me how little the Obama victory actually symbolized a nation moving forward, and how much work there was to be done.

Two and a half years later, mom should be damn proud of her home state.  NY has done what CA couldn't do: nurtured a champion of the cause (Andrew Cuomo), organized a coalition of disconnected lobbying organizations, garnered support and muscle across party lines and overpowered the formidable force of the Catholic Church.  All this sure seems like it would be harder in an east coast state that contains Wall Street than a west coast state that contains the Castro*... so basically what I'm trying to say is, nice work, New York.  California, get your shit together.

Also, a shout-out to my father's employer of 35 years, Xerox, which made a significant contribution to winning the first Republican vote by endorsing the bill.  My school's LGBT club does a lot of work to promote and collaborate with companies that support equality for all their employees, and it's nice to see corporations standing up for what they believe in. (Hint hint, Exxon Mobil.)


*Obviously I know it's a bit more complex than this.  But it's still embarrassing to be a Californian when it comes to this issue.