PRIDE Month: An acknowledgement and celebration of 50 years of advancing LGBTQ rights
JUNE 21, 2020 • BLOG POST • CHRIS DRAGO, EXECUTIVE SPONSOR OF THE HPE PRIDE EMPLOYEE RESOURCE GROUP
IN THIS ARTICLE
- HPE LGBTQ+ team members stand in solidarity with our Black and African American team members
- We applaud the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity
This year we’re focused on the intersectionality of PRIDE, unconditional inclusivity, and allyship
June is PRIDE month, and this year marks its 50th anniversary. On the first anniversary of the Stonewall riots – June 28, 1970 – thousands of people marched in the streets of Manhattan from the Stonewall Inn to Central Park in what was then called “Christopher Street Liberation Day,” America’s first gay pride parade. This year, while we recognize PRIDE month, HPE LGBTQ+ team members stand in solidarity with our Black and African American team members because none of us are equal until all of us are equal.
Our history is marked with countless Black LGBTQ+ trailblazers who paved the way. Baynard Rustin advised Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and helped organize the March on Washington. Marsha P. Johnson was a central figure in the gay liberation movement starting with the 1969 police raid on the Stonewall Inn.
That is why, this year, we have decided to host a number of team member initiatives focusing on the intersectionality of PRIDE, and to engage allies towards our ambition to be unconditionally inclusive. In partnership with both our HPE Black Employee Network and Out & Equal, we will be hosting a dialogue about “Developing Intersectional Allyship.”
This year, we also celebrate another historical moment, with U.S. Supreme Court ruling declaring that LGBTQ+ employees are protected against workplace discrimination, which marks the first federal action to protect LGBTQ+ workers. At HPE, we are proud to have supported the amicus briefs presented to the court, and we continue to offer our support to the advancement of the rights of our LGBTQ+ team members globally.
While we celebrate this decision, we know there is more work to be done. HPE calls on the U.S. Congress to pass the Equality Act, which would extend to LGBTQ+ people anti-discrimination protections that other minorities enjoy in housing, public accommodations, public education, credit and other areas.
HPE believes in being a Force for Good and we will stand together to ensure equality is achieved for all. We hope all of our team members and their communities enjoy a safe and happy 50th celebration of PRIDE month.