The Most Powerful Advocate for Gay Rights in America - The Fortune 500

Big Business had its boot firmly on Arizona governor Jan Brewer's leathered neck this week when she vetoed a bill that would have allowed business owners to discriminate against gays.

...a letter arrived at her office early this week with a stern warning from some of the biggest names in the local business community.

Signed by the heads of four Arizona business consortiums, with board members including officers of Bank of America, Intel and the Arizona Cardinals football franchise, the letter urged Brewer to strike down the measure known as S.B. 1062. The letter raised the prospect that the legislation could stain Arizona’s national reputation and touch off a wave of unpredictable litigation thanks to the bill’s broad, vague wording.

"We are troubled by any legislation that could be interpreted to permit discrimination against a particular group of people in the marketplace,” the missive read. “We all have a fervent desire for Arizona to be a welcoming, attractive destination for the top talent that will be the cornerstone of our continued economic growth.”

It was a sharp admonition from some of the groups — including the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce and the Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry — that represent the tent poles of the state’s economy. And over the next 48 hours, the private-sector pressure on Brewer just kept growing.

What Arizona proved, as much as any other in recent American politics, is that there’s currently no more powerful constituency for gay rights than the Fortune 500 list.

The corporate community’s engagement in the fight over S.B. 1062 was overpowering: American Express wrote to Brewer on Tuesday asking her to veto the law, according to a spokesman for the credit card company, which has a large presence in the state. JPMorgan, with its 11,000-odd employees in Arizona, said on Wednesday that the legislation “does not reflect the values of our country or the State of Arizona and should be vetoed.” The national bank Wells Fargo also opposed it, along with Apple, Marriott and other big corporations with significant Arizona-based investments.

Archbishop of Canterbury - Homophobes are "Wicked"

Britain's top prelate, the Archbishop of Canterbury, warns that Christians need to "repent" the mistreatment of gay people and, if they don't, they're "wicked."

The Most Rev Justin Welby told an audience of born-again Christians in London that the vast majority of people under 35 find the Church's beliefs on the issue "incomprehensible" and equate them to "racism and other forms of gross and atrocious injustice".

While standing by his decision to vote against same-sex marriage in the House of Lords, the Archbishop, who is an evangelical, made clear that he was reassessing his own thinking, saying he wanted to get his own mind "clear" on the issue.

 

California Gays Headed to the Supremes

It'll be up to the US Supreme Court to decide the validity of California's ban on gay marriage.  A US Federal appeals court has ruled the ban violates the US Constitution.

"...the panel found that Proposition 8 – passed by California voters in November 2008 by a margin of 52 percent to 48 percent -- violated the equal protection rights of two same-sex couples that brought he suit. The proposition placed a specific prohibition in the State Constitution against marriage between two people of the same sex."

Gay Rights for the US Military

28-retired US generals and admirals have signed a letter to Congress asking that gays and lesbians in the American military be treated like first-class citizens. The group want Congress to repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" law.

President Bill Clinton wanted a total end to the ban on homosexuals serving in the US military but was forced to accept the "don't ask, don't tell" law as a compromise.

Among Democrats, Senators John Edwards and Barak Obama are strong supporters for scrapping the existing law. Obama compares it to the integration of blacks in the armed forces as both a moral issue and an achievable goal.

The Pentagon, however, isn't showing much enthusiasm at moving to fully integrate homosexuals in the armed services. No Republican presidential candidate supports scrapping "don't ask, don't tell."