Petitioners push Best Buy to oppose anti-gay referendum
Fri. July 13, 2012 11:46 AM by Wisconsin Gazette
Minneapolis, MN -
Nearly 30,000 petitioners on Change.org want Minnesota-based Best Buy to formally oppose a ballot measure against gay marriage in the state.
The measure on the November general election ballot would amend the state constitution to define marriage as the union of a man and a woman. Already Minnesota does not recognize same-sex marriage.
With the ballot initiative battle intensifying, University of Minnesota Law School grad Andrew Korando started the Best Buy petition drive.
Two other major Minnesota companies, Target Corporation and General Mills, have announced stands against the anti-gay measure, saying it is discriminatory and bad for business.
Target's statement said a constitutional fight over the issue is not good for Minnesota or "the state's ability to attract jobs and grow the economy." ??
General Mills said the company does "not believe the proposed constitutional amendment is in the best interests of our employees or our state economy. We value diversity. We value inclusion."
Best Buy, a company struggling with new technology and retail trends, had a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's index on corporate LGBT equality until 2010, when it donated $100,000 to a political action committee that supported anti-gay candidates in 2010.
Korando said, ??"Best Buy's silence on this discriminatory ballot measure is both economically and morally irresponsible. Laws that discriminate are never good for business because they undermine recruitment of top industry talent."
On the Web: ?http://www.change.org/bestbuy.
The measure on the November general election ballot would amend the state constitution to define marriage as the union of a man and a woman. Already Minnesota does not recognize same-sex marriage.
With the ballot initiative battle intensifying, University of Minnesota Law School grad Andrew Korando started the Best Buy petition drive.
Two other major Minnesota companies, Target Corporation and General Mills, have announced stands against the anti-gay measure, saying it is discriminatory and bad for business.
Target's statement said a constitutional fight over the issue is not good for Minnesota or "the state's ability to attract jobs and grow the economy." ??
General Mills said the company does "not believe the proposed constitutional amendment is in the best interests of our employees or our state economy. We value diversity. We value inclusion."
Best Buy, a company struggling with new technology and retail trends, had a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's index on corporate LGBT equality until 2010, when it donated $100,000 to a political action committee that supported anti-gay candidates in 2010.
Korando said, ??"Best Buy's silence on this discriminatory ballot measure is both economically and morally irresponsible. Laws that discriminate are never good for business because they undermine recruitment of top industry talent."
On the Web: ?http://www.change.org/bestbuy.
Article provided in partnership with Wisconsin Gazette.