For some reason that is not clear to me, merchants reaching out to the LGBTQA+ community, either through marketing or with themed products on offer, have become politicized by what I am confident is a small but vocal group of people whose motivation strikes me as inexplicable without reference to the concept of “bigotry.” This is disappointing indeed to see in 2023. Some, but not all, of their disruptive activities, boycotts, and public statements might be protected by free speech guarantees in the law, but that does not mean that anyone else has to agree with them or refrain from pointing out both that they are being deeply unkind to their neighbors (particularly to those who claim a religious justification for their actions), and that this sort of behavior deployed in the service of this particular cause is unwelcome in our communities and in our contemporary society.
Gunderson Employment Law is committed to the equal and dignified treatment of everyone. This includes but is not limited to, opposing discrimination against anyone or any group because of their gender identity or sexual orientation. As a practitioner of anti-discrimination law, I literally make my living fighting discrimination of exactly this sort.
I look forward to the day that discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation, as well as on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, marital status, age, disability or familial status, is a thing of the past and I need to find a new and different area of law to practice. Sadly, I fear that day is long in our future. So for now, I call myself an ally and I put my money where my mouth is: fighting discrimination is how I make my living.
LGBTQA+ clients are welcome here, both employees and employers.