by Ivy Bottini

Question: Do boycotts work? And why do so many in our community support businesses that do not like us?
—D.R., Los Angeles

Yes, boycotts work, but they require total commitment over a long haul, with widespread support—not just from our community. We would need the support of labor, progressive faith communities and other civil rights organizations. Whether it is a boycott or a proposition fight such as we just experienced, the same coalition building is required to be successful.

Some successful boycotts include:

The Montgomery, Ala. bus boycott during the African-American civil rights movement and the California grape boycott on behalf of Chicano farm workers in the 1960s and 1970s.

The National Organization for Women's economic boycott of the states that did not ratify the Equal Rights Amendment in the late 1970s.

In response to Anita Bryant's attack on the lesbian and gay community in 1977, a boycott of Florida orange juice was initiated throughout the country. It was the first LGBT boycott that received major media attention. Bryant, pop singer and former Miss Oklahoma, was a spokesperson for the Florida Citrus Commission. She privately founded an organization called “Save Our Children,” dedicated not to the welfare of children but to the repeal of a Dade County, Florida ordinance that protected gay men and lesbians from discrimination in employment and housing. Ultimately, Bryant was removed as the spokesperson due to the economic impact of the boycott on the Florida orange juice industry.

The Colorado tourism boycott, an approach LGBT activists adopted when Colorado voters passed their Amendment 2 in 1992. This law prohibited local governments from enacting measures protecting the civil rights of LGBT people in employment and housing. The boycott denied Colorado between 45 to 100 million dollars before the amendment was ultimately invalidated by court rule.

The longest boycott our community has sustained is against the Coors Brewing Company. A boycott was started by labor unions in 1973 protesting the company's antagonistic attitude. They were joined by African-Americans, Latinos and LGBT activists in 1977, dissatisfied with the corporation's practices. LGBT activists were particularly incensed that the brewery required prospective employees to take a polygraph test to determine if they were homosexual. Coors did not have an anti-discrimination policy, and prospective employees found to be homosexual were not hired.

Activist Morris Kight, among the earliest proponents of the boycott, stated in 2001, "the issue for us is that the money the family makes off beer is funneled into anti-gay causes." The issue delineated by Morris is still true today. The boycott is still ongoing, although sadly some businesses in our community are serving Coors beer and some organizations accept donations from the Coors Brewing Company. I urge those businesses and organizations to rethink their actions.

Why does our community continue to support companies that attack us with their profits? This is a two-part problem: 1) People don't do their homework and 2) People don't want to be inconvenienced in their buying decisions.

A good source to assist in the screening process is a booklet by HRC, Buyers for Equality—2009 at HRC.org/buyersguide

I encourage you to Google “boycotts.” You will be amazed. They do work!

Questions? askivy@frontierspublishing.com