-by Michelangelo Signorile
It's 2012, and in the state of New York gays and lesbians have full
civil rights, including marriage equality. Moreover, gays are no
longer banned in the U.S. military. But they are still banned from
Fifth Avenue's annual St. Patrick's Day Parade in an embarrassing
throwback for everyone involved.
It's frankly appalling that NBC, and now its parent company Comcast,
still sells the broadcast rights (on its local affiliate, WNBC) to the
intolerant bunch that runs the parade (in 2007 that amount was
$300,000) and then helps the organizers sell advertising to major
companies. More than that, one of NBC's top executives, a man who aids
the organizers in getting those ad dollars, was chosen as this year's
Grand Marshal.
As David Mixner notes, most New York politicians who support equality
won't march in the parade because of this bigotry. Last year, the
Irish Foreign Minister condemned the parade, and the President of
Ireland declined an invitation to be Grand Marshal. But Francis X.
Comerford, Chief Revenue Officer and President of Commercial
Operations for the NBC Owned Television Stations, has no problem
leading the parade as Grand Marshal.
Groups like the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD)
have criticized NBC for its relationship with the parade since the
early '90s. Other groups have protested the parade annually, sometimes
resulting in arrests, and this year the group Irish Queers will be
demonstrating once again. For years it's all been to no avail.
But with Comcast now in charge after the controversial merger with NBC
was finalized, 2012 could be the last year in which gays are excluded
-- or the last year in which NBC is involved in the parade.
There are a few reasons for this. One of them has to do with the terms
of the merger itself, in which Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of
Comcast, testified before the House Judiciary Committee, where he
vowed to adhere to diversity in every aspect of the company's business
dealings. From the company's own blog:
Diversity: A few members of the Committee raised questions about
diversity at Comcast (and NBCU). Brian reiterated the company's
commitment to promoting diversity in everything the company does. To
me, as Comcast's Chief Diversity Officer, this means, among other
things, diversity in our workforce, in our programming lineup, in our
supplier base, and in our community investments (philanthropy) -- and
having results we can be proud of.
Furthermore, the actual approval letter from the FCC states that
Comcast must adhere to diversity rules for seven years or the merger
could be undone:
Protecting Diversity, Localism, Broadcast and Other Public Interest
Concerns. The Commission is also imposing conditions and accepting
voluntary commitments concerning a numbers of other public interest
issues, including diversity, localism, and broadcasting, among others.
Sure, it's debatable whether selling the broadcast rights to a parade
that admittedly excludes a minority group violates the FCC's diversity
rules. But it's certainly something that LGBT activists would argue,
bringing a lot of attention to the issue. Comcast may not want that
fight now.
And that brings me to the other reasons. Comcast prides itself on its
outreach to the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT)
community. Just take a look at this page, where the company touts its
95-percent score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality
Index and brags of programming that reaches out to LGBT people.
Comcast also sponsors the annual GLAAD Media Awards and, as the
company describes, "partners with various LGBT community centers
across the country that provide a range of services for the LGBT
community."
It's a different time than when the Ancient Order of the Hibernians
began excluding gays from the St. Patrick's Day Parade in the early
'90s. Netroots activism gets things done very quickly today. HRC, in
part responding to pressure from other activists, lowered Target's and
Best Buy's CEI score after the retail chains gave money to a political
action committee that backed an anti-gay candidate. GLAAD withdrew its
support of the failed AT&T/T-Mobile merger after grassroots activists
mobilized on the Web and raised concerns.
Already, GLAAD is calling for the parade to be dropped moving forward
if gays are not included. "The idea that a group of LGBT people aren't
allowed to participate in a parade in the middle of New York City in
the year 2012 is completely out of touch with a majority of Americans
and it is frankly indefensible," GLAAD spokesperson Herndon Graddick
said in a statement. "GLAAD will be requesting to meet with WNBC to
ensure that, if such discriminatory practices remain in place, the
event isn't one associated with such an important and inclusive media
outlet that should represent the full diversity of New York City."
When LGBT activists have organized online and focused on companies
that have supported homophobia -- companies that pride themselves on
being pro-gay -- they've been enormously successful. Microsoft
reversed course pronto in 2005 after it went neutral on a gay rights
bill in the state of Washington, and that's just one example.
The truth is, most LGBT activists weren't focused on the St. Patrick's
Day Parade all these years, with bigger fish to fry. But many are now
looking at this as unfinished business -- as I said, an embarrassment
in a state where we now have marriage rights -- and they are also
seeing Comcast as a company that is vulnerable. If Comcast doesn't
want a battle on its hands, a battle it will ultimately lose, after
much PR erosion, it will make sure that March 18, 2012 is the
beginning of the end of the ban on gays in the St. Patrick's Day
Parade.
--
Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time.
Have a great day,
Tommy
--
Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time.
Have a great day,
Tommy
--
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