TIS THE SEASON
The holiday season is in full swing. And I know we are all making preparations for buying gifts for our loved ones and professional contacts and others around us. But as you go forth and spend you hard-earned money, please take a moment to consider who you are giving money to.
At this time of year, it is natural to look at giving money to charities that provide services to people who are suffering or just don't have enough. But that doesn't mean they shouldn't be scrutinized. Although the majority truly take to heart the calling to help the poor and needy, some, even some of the largest and best known, see this as an additional way to harm us.
You may have seen this make the rounds on Facebook, but it bears repeating: Don't give money to the Salvation Army.
http://www.bilerico.com/2010/11/why_you_shouldnt_give_to_the_salvation_army.php
The worst thing about this is that I think about what these supposedly Chirstian folks say to themselves all the time "What would Jesus do?" I'm pretty sure Jesus would not have let two guys sleep on the street when they most needed help. I know Jesus would not have asked anyone to renounce their love for someone in order to get a hot meal. And I definitely know that Jesus told us to love one another. The Salvation Army fails on all counts.
If you want to give to gay-positive charities, there is always Gods Love We Deliver, Habitat for Humanity and Housing Works. I'm sure there are many in your community as well.
When you are buying gifts, think about how those corporations use that money and how they treat their employees.
The Human Rights Campaign provides a Holiday Buyers Guide, every year around this time, so you can always choose the company that treats their LGBT employees with fairness and respect.
http://www.hrc.org/buyersguide2011/
For example: buy Mattel toys for the kiddies because they have a 100% score from HRC. Hasbro by contrast gets a 50% score.
There's even an app for that. And it╒s free╔ just search on iTunes for HRC Buying for Workplace Equality Guide.
Finally, if you want to go beyond just the HRC ranking visit:
http://influenceexplorer.com/
This allows you to search by company, organization and person to see how much of their political spending goes to Democrats or Republicans. It separates money given by the PAC and money given as donations from employees. This allows you to separate what the company is doing from the actions of the employees.
Everyone has different thresholds, here's my rule of thumb:
1) If I can help it, I won't buy from anyone that gives less than 50% to Democrats (give or take 5% depending on the industry).
2) If given a choice, I will always choose the one that gives more money to Democrats.
3) The most important number is the PAC number not the employee giving number.
They even have a an application that will analyze your credit card spending to see if there are any companies who you spend a lot with, who are, in effect, working hard to deny you your rights.
https://checking.influenceexplorer.com/
So happy holidays everyone. But remember that money talks, and where you spend can make a difference, or at the least send a message.
