August 2009 - “Beyond Our Own Backyard”

Dear Members of the GBBC and GLBT Community;

Recently while enjoying a night out with friends that were visiting from out of town, I realized the comfort I had built myself in Boston might have also blinded me from the bigger picture of the GLBT world.  While enjoying a drink with them, we were discussing their adventures earlier that day, when all of a sudden one of my guests asked, “What’s on the other side of Bunker Hill?”  My immediate response was, “Well, I guess you fall off the earth”, insinuating we have everything right here in Boston.  It was at that moment I realized that by plugging myself into Boston’s GLBT community, I might have unplugged myself from the rest of the GLBT global news.  So armed with my lap top later that night, I could only do what one must do…I Google “GLBT News”.

Having pride myself on being worldly on GLBT topics, especially GLBT business topics, I unleashed the power of Google to see just what a ‘day in the life of the GLBT world’ was like.  At first what I thought might not be directly related to the GLBT business world, I realized actually was.  Because our community has become so much part of the global market, we significantly fuel the engine of each day in the business world.  In my quick stroll round the ‘virtual planet’ I learned that…

• HBO leads the television market with GLBT characters.  Out of 14 new series, 10 have GLBT representation
• NBC reported Democrats see greater acceptance of gay unions, as the president of HRC is quoted that “We are at the tipping point of movement”.
• MSNBC reported that the Ford Motors reported that it was finally going to run advertisements to the GLBT community in gay publications reversing a prior decision to pull this type of advertisement
• The Associated Press reported that “Despite laws, gay wedding industry is booming”
• The NGLCC reports they are working with other national GLBT organizations to identify a candidate to serve on President Obama’s administration
• Wall Street reports that the GLBT community once again rang the bell at the close of the trading day.
• The Associated Press reported that the gap is closing on allowing gay clergy in the Presbyterian region

After reading a few hundred web pages I was reminded at how our community not only touches so many industries and people (both gay and straight), it’s also how Boston’s GLBT backyard we all have grown comfortable in, is actually a place where many of the successes I read began.  Boston has been a beacon of strength for our equal rights and it is the strength of our own community that diversified the business world we work, shop and live in.  It has always been our communities choose to share our pride with all Boston communities. 

Today I am reminded that the golden rules we were introduced to when just knee high, are the same rules we strive to have for ourselves in today’s business global market.  After my virtual trip around the world, it is no doubt that our community has positioned itself in the global market, not because of who we choose to marry, love, or live with but because of being like everyone else…bright, intelligent, caring, loving, creative and accepting individuals. 

At the end of the day, I realized that somewhere in the world there is another Ed Travers Googling the same topic…and is peaking over the virtual backyard fence of Boston saying, “what an amazing community and a great place to be work, live and be who I am”…making our backyard someone’s else dream.

Ed Travers
GBBC President