The lobbying group “Out @NBCUniversal” announced on its social media that they will be the first gay group to march in New York City’s St. Patrick’s Day parade. They linked to NBC New York, which reported “Organizers of the world's largest St. Patrick's Day Parade say they're ending a ban and allowing a gay group to march under its own banner for the first time.”
The parade committee sent a statement to the Associated Press that the “lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender support group at the company that broadcasts the parade,” would be marching up Fifth Avenue “under an identifying banner.”
It's unclear how the group was chosen: whether OUT@NBCUniversal, which describes itself as "the affinity group for LGBT & Straight Ally employees at NBCUniversal," was invited by the organizers or applied. Parade directors voted unanimously to include the group, the statement said.
Next, I'm sure we can expect glowing coverage from the liberal media, starting with NBC and MSNBC. Comcast and NBC Universal have celebrated being named among the nation’s “best places to work” for LGBT people, getting a 100 on the “Corporate Equality Index” from the leftist Human Rights Campaign:
"This ranking reflects our ongoing efforts to be the employer of choice for the LGBT community," said Maria G. Arias, Executive Director of Diversity and Inclusion, Comcast Corporation. "Our company recognizes that having a diverse, inclusive and valued workforce is not just the right thing to do, but is the best way to run a business. By fostering inclusion, our employees are encouraged to share their diverse perspectives, experiences, cultures, and ideas which helps drive innovation in our products, services and entertainment."
"The Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index is a valuable and practical tool for all corporations," added Craig Robinson, Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer for NBCUniversal. "For those of us at Comcast and NBCUniversal, we do not see it merely as a measure of LGBT equality, but also as reflection of our success in creating a corporate culture that is inclusive of all communities."
The official Comcast press release goes on to list not just their employment policies, but the “pro-equality” bias of their content, with films like "Milk" and "Brokeback Mountain." They tout their support for an alphabet soup of the gay Left, including journalism groups that try to ban social conservatives from the airwaves like GLAAD (so forget the talk of "diversity and inclusion"):
Comcast and NBCUniversal raise awareness and resources for numerous organizations that promote LGBT inclusion, respect and equality, including: HRC; GLAAD; Equality Forum; Gay & Lesbian Victory Institute; Parents, Families & Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG); National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF); NGLCC; National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA); Point Foundation; Equality Forum; Stonewall National Museum and Archives; Familia es Familia; Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN); CenterLink, the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center, and other LGBT community Centers across the nation; Outfest and other LGBT film festivals and pride celebrations throughout the country.
