Buying for Equality

I am frequently surprised that LGBT individuals I know who are fairly active when it comes to gay rights activism are not always very well informed when it comes to which manufacturers, merchants and services providers are the most supportive of LGBT rights. Simply put, why spend your money at companies that do not support people like you and me? One good tool for checking out the scores of the producers of various products we all use in daily life is HRC's "Buying for Equality Guide" which can be found online at: http://www.hrc.org/buyersguide/ As an example, I switched all my prescriptions to Walgreens from Rite Ad. Both were equally convenient, but Walgreens has a 100% score versus Rite Aid's lower score. You may be surprised to find out that the makers of some often used products have terrible scores - e.g., Bayer only has a 15% score. In terms of buying gasoline, Exxon has a 0% score versus BP's 100% score.

Ratings in Buying for Equality are based on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s annual report card, the Corporate Equality Index. A record 195 companies scored 100 percent on this year’s report, which is a significant increase from the 138 companies that earned a perfect score last year. Every day, from enhanced domestic partner benefits to transgender inclusion in non-discrimination policies, we are seeing a revolution in the American workplace.