Calling in 'gay' to work is latest form of protest

[Ichingcarpenter]

Source: AP

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Some same-sex marriage supporters are urging people to "call in gay" Wednesday to show how much the country relies on gays and lesbians, but others question whether it's wise to encourage skipping work given the nation's economic distress.

Organizers of "Day Without a Gay" - scheduled to coincide with International Human Rights Day and modeled after similar work stoppages by Latino immigrants - also are encouraging people to perform volunteer work and refrain from spending money.

Sean Hetherington, a West Hollywood comedian and personal trainer, dreamed up the idea with his boyfriend, Aaron Hartzler, after reading online that a few angry gay-rights activists were calling for a daylong strike to protest California voters' passage last month of Proposition 8, which reversed this year's state Supreme Court decision allowing gay marriage.
"It's extra-challenging for people to think about taking off work as a form of protest, given that we are talking about people who may not be out (as gay) at work, and given the current economic situation and job market," said Jules Graves, 38, coordinator of the Colorado Queer Straight Alliance. "There is really not any assurance employers would appreciate it for what it is."
Graves' group nonetheless is arranging for interested participants to volunteer at the local African Community Center in Denver. The agency said it could find projects to keep 20 people busy, but so far only 10 have pledged to show up, said Graves.

Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CALLING_IN_GAY?SITE=SCFLO&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

[floridablue]

1. In todays climate, they would be replaced before sundown.

[Radical Activist]

4. What climate?

The climate of the Chicago sit in strike? This is what the next four years will look like.

[Robb]

19. Far be it from me to ever agree with RA, but

...I absolutely agree with RA. :)

[DUlover2909]

6. It depends on what their jobs are. They might be hard to replace.

I know for a fact that I couldn't be replaced with an equally competent worker at my job in one day. My employer would be better off just letting me go for a day.

[Xenotime]

15. Please elaborate on exactly what you mean.

[floridablue]

21. Mean there are employers who would seize any opportunity

to get rid of someone who would protest, or try to use their company as a lever, or simply to get rid of gay people.

[ohio2007]

2. bet they couldn't say that with a straight face ..... lol nt

[Radical Activist]

3. Awesome. This is perfect.

I think we're going to see a lot more aggressive tactics like this from many groups for the next four years. Things are changing.

[Ichingcarpenter]

5. Denver has this pretty organized and its been in the news there a lot

for a couple of weeks and its gotten some support by employers.



This is the first national news feed I've seen on this story.

[dipsydoodle]

7. If it's a Jewish owned company

do you call in goy ? :shrug:

[AmyCamus]

18. oy...

vey! :fistbump:

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

22. Some ultra-ultra-ultra-Orthodox Jews voted for Prop 8 thinking it would ban goy marriage. -nt

[stray cat]

8. If someone wants to take a vacation day and gives advance notice fine

If they are going to lie about being sick and make more work for others forget it.

[GodlessBiker]

9. That's the whole point. For people to understand the contribution that gay people make.

Absence might make the heart grow fonder, or at least appreciate a little more.

[FreeState]

10. So when blacks boycotted the busses in the south they should have

paid buss fare anyway? Its an economic boycotte - not a vacation.

[jberryhill]

12. The buses had some connection to that which was being protested

If your employer opposed Prop 8, then your employer should be penalized... uh... why?

Did blacks boycott black-owned businesses?

[FreeState]

13. You do realize people are paid more if they are straight right?

Want to add your partner to your insurance? Sure - go ahead and pay for it out of your own pocket and pay taxes on it as income as well. Some employers will pay for it but you still have to pay tax on it where straight people do not if they are married - this is all federal by the way - a state cant do away with the 1100+ federal benefits that come with marriage.

And yes Blacks boycotting effected black people at their place of employment.

[jberryhill]

14. I'm self employed

...and always paid for my own health insurance.

The point of the bus boycott was that the bus company had something to do with actually enforcing the discrimination being protested.

[FreeState]

26. What does that have to do with it? Your employment is not relevant to my point

all those that are self employed pay for their own insurance - straight or gay. Those that get it from an employer is where the inequality arises.

Marriage rights directly correlate to pay in this country. Just like the busses and discrimination.

Edit to ad:

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS141734+19-May-2008+BW20080519

ASHINGTON--(Business Wire)--According to a recent national survey conducted by Harris Interactive(R), nearly one in four gay and lesbian adults lack health insurance and are nearly twice as likely as their heterosexual counterparts to have no health insurance coverage. When asked, 22 percent of gay and lesbian survey respondents reported having no health insurance, compared to only 12 percent of heterosexual adults in the survey.

<snip>

"We know the problem of the uninsured has reached crisis proportions in this country and, unfortunately, this survey shows that the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) community is today at greater risk. What GLBT households and all Americans deserve and need is affordable access to quality health care that results in positive outcomes and facilitates prevention, wellness and chronic Care coordination," said Peter Francel CEBS, Head of Sales-Product Group for Aetna. "We must step up all efforts to serve the uninsured and take the lead in transforming our health care system for not only our GLBT members but all those who are not covered by health insurance today," he added, noting that Aetna's GLBT friendly workplace policies have earned the company a 100% score on the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index since 2002.

[jberryhill]

27. So, to recap

I should not frequent gay owned and operated businesses on a particular day, in order to make some point about Prop. 8?

And whether or not your employer supports gay rights or even provides health insurance, you shouldn't show up to work that day.

And if you are self-employed, you should just... uh... what?

[FreeState]

28. You change the topic rather than talk about the real issues - fine

but if you want to do something to help the GLBT movement this is what people who are supporting the day with out a gay are asking people to do:

Call in gay and volunteer your time to a charity
Dont purchase anything from anyone all day (and if you must use a gay business if you can)
If you work for a gay business you can call in gay or not (per the organizers website)
If your self employed volunteer all day or not (per the organizers website)

http://www.daywithoutagay.org/

you want to make excuses as to why you dont want to do it fine - no one is forcing you to do it.

[jberryhill]

29. I guess I'll just tell all my clients - including my gay clients - to piss up a rope for a day

I don't see how that advances anything.

[FreeState]

30. You don't want to get it apparently

Seriously if you want to understand why read the links... But to be honest it looks like you want to argue rather than understand or be supprtive.

[jberryhill]

32. I read the links

And the assumption that I'm not "supportive" of equal rights is absurd, particularly if you knew anything about my family.

The notion of an indiscriminate untargeted boycott of everything does not strike me as constructive, as much as it seems simply juvenile. So shoot me.

What is the mechanism by which this proposed action accomplishes an identifiable goal?

[gratuitous]

11. I'd cover my homosexual co-workers' desks for a day

Our congregation kids on the square about what might happen if all the gays in our denomination just sat out for a Sunday. Lots of choirs would be without a director, and lots of children would be without their story time or minister.

[underpants]

16. I was just about to post this. Good for them

you don't get anywhere sitting quietly and hoping for the best

[Mudoria]

17. If I were an employer and I got this excuse from an employee

he or she would be taking a vacation for a few days. Protest on your own time. Otherwise, there are plenty of people out there waiting to take your job.

[Occulus]

24. Actually, they are simply refusing to sell you their time for a day

and they are completely within their rights to do so.

We all have the right to refuse service to anyone, at any time, for any reason. The refusal to work- the strike- is, IMO, as a blue-collar APWU union member, a right inherent to each and every employee, coast to coast; employers should not be able and indeed cannot be allowed to do jack shit about it. My union traded that right away in exchange for a no-layoff clause, and IMO it was a piss-poor trade.

We should be glad we have jobs? No, EMPLOYERS SHOULD BE GLAD WE'RE WILLING TO DO THEIR WORK FOR THEM.

And that's what this protest is about.

[LostinVA]

25. Thanks for your support for equal civil rights

:eyes:

[No Elephants]

20. I heard about this for the first time this morning, which means that a lot of people have not

heard about it. If only a fraction of people who might have participated even know about it, that would seem to defeat the entire point. I wish they had given more lead time and done a better job publicizing it. However, if I were in the work force, I'd call in tomorrow as a hetero who believes in gay marriage. I hope heteros who are in the work force do participate.

[Pryderi]

23. k&r

[EFerrari]

31. .

[TankLV]

33. Not me - I could lose my job...

this "depression" is NOT the time to risk job security...

this is not a good idea or time...

there are other ways...

sorry to disagree with the ACT of this "protest"...

I did not take the day off...and never planned to...

wrong idea, wrong time...

and if you can't see that, I can't help you...

[closeupready]

34. I'm fine with people doing this, but I didn't.

Honestly, I think a better call to action would have been something like, Be Openly Gay Day. I see merit in calling in gay as organizers put it together, but I certainly see how people hold different points of view on the effectiveness of it.