National
DynCorp adopts LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination policy
Military contractor responds to media reports, online petition
A military contractor that has come under fire for allegedly allowing anti-gay harassment on the job has changed its policy to include non-discrimination protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
DynCorp International LLC, a military contractor and aircraft maintenance company in Fairfax, Va., updated its non-discrimation policy last month to include protections for LGBT workers, according to a company spokesperson.
Ashley Burke, a DynCorp spokesperson, said, “In keeping with our goals of maintaining a positive, supportive work environment, a number of our internal policies and our Code of Ethics and Business Conduct were updated and strengthened in January.”
The company’s code of ethics and business conduct details the change on its second page under a heading for guidelines governing daily workplace behavior. A previous version of this guidance lacked the words sexual orientation and gender identity.
“We offer equal employment opportunities and encourage workplace diversity and make employment decisions without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, color, national origin, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, veteran status, marital status, ancestry, genetic information, disability, or any status protected by federal, state, local or host country law,” the new guidance states.
DynCorp came under pressure to change its policy after the Washington Blade reported last month on a settlement the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reached with the company as a result of a complaint was filed on alleged anti-gay harassment on the job.
A straight employee at the company, James Friso, was allegedly harassed in 2006 based on his perceived sexual orientation while on post at Taji, Iraq. According to the EEOC complaint, one of Friso’s male co-workers allegedly called Friso “faggot,” “dick-sucker,” and “queer” on a daily basis. When Friso allegedly complained the company did nothing and sent him to another post with lower pay in Mannheim, Germany. The company has denied any wrongdoing.
As a result of the EEOC settlement, Friso was awarded $155,000, but the contractor wasn’t required to change its non-discrimination policy to include protections based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
Freedom to Work, an LGBT workplace advocacy group, launched an online petition last month urging DynCorp to change its policy to include LGBT protections. As of Thursday, the petition had 54,878 signatures.
Tico Almeida, Freedom to Work’s president, commended DynCorp for updating the policy and said it represents a positive change for a company.
“DynCorp has an ugly history of sex trafficking committed against young girls, racial discrimination against African-Americans, and most recently a hostile work environment with anti-gay epithets like ‘faggot’ and ‘queer’ used on a daily basis,” Almeida said. “I’m very glad to know they’ve seen the error of their ways and have listened to the call of almost 55,000 Americans who signed the Freedom to Work petition on Change.org in the last two weeks asking DynCorp to add sexual orientation and gender identity to their non-discrimination policy. That change was long overdue.”
Almedia noted that DynCorp is now in line with leading military contractors like Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman, which he said added LGBT protections to their policies years ago.
“Those top government contractors realize that discrimination is bad for the bottom line – and a waste of our taxpayer money,” Almeida added.
Freedom to Work had been drawing attention to the alleged anti-gay practices of DynCorp and its previous lack of LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination policy to prompt action from the White House. The group, as well as other advocates, have been pushing President Obama to issue an executive order barring federal dollars from going to contractors without non-discrimination protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
DynCorp receives more than 96 percent of its revenue from federal contracts that amount to $2 billion each year, making it the 32nd largest federal contractor, according to Freedom to Work.
Almeida said DynCorp’s ability to change its policy demonstrates that other companies could follow suit if Obama issued the directive.
“If a big corporation like DynCorp can change, then President Obama can certainly create change by signing the ENDA executive order that his staff has already drafted for him,” Almeida said. “The order is sitting on a desk in the White House right now just waiting to be signed, and it’s time for the president to put pen to paper.”
Multiple sources have told the Blade that the Labor and Justice Departments have cleared an administrative measure that would bar federal dollars from going to companies without LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination protections and have sent their recommendation to the White House for final approval. The White House hasn’t said one way or the other whether Obama will issue the directive.
Federal Government
US Census Bureau testing survey on LGBTQ households
Agency proposing questions about sexual orientation and gender identity
The U.S. Census Bureau is seeking public comment on a proposed test of sexual orientation and gender identity questions on the American Community Survey. The test would begin this summer and continue into next year.
The Census Bureau published the request as a Federal Register notice. In its press release the agency noted that the ACS is an ongoing survey that collects detailed housing and socioeconomic data. It allows the Census Bureau to provide timely and relevant housing and socioeconomic statistics, even for low levels of geography.
As part of the process for adding new questions to the ACS, the Census Bureau tests potential questions to evaluate the quality of the data collected.
The Census Bureau proposes testing questions about sexual orientation and gender identity to meet the needs of other federal agencies that have expressed interest in or have identified legal uses for the information, such as enforcing civil rights and equal employment measures.
The test would follow the protocols of the actual ACS — with one person asked to respond to the survey on behalf of the entire household. These particular questions are asked about people 15 years of age or older. Households are invited to respond to the survey online, by paper questionnaire or by phone.
The current Federal Register notice gives the public a final opportunity to provide feedback before the Census Bureau submits its recommendations to the Office of Management and Budget for approval. The public may provide feedback through May 30 online.
The White House
Judy Shepard to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom
Nancy Pelosi is also among this year’s honorees
Beloved LGBTQ advocate Judy Shepard is among the 19 honorees who will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the U.S., the White House announced on Friday.
The mother of Matthew Shepard, who was killed in 1998 in the country’s most notorious anti-gay hate crime, she co-founded the Matthew Shepard Foundation with her husband Dennis to raise awareness about anti-LGBTQ violence.
The organization runs education, outreach, and advocacy programs, many focused on schools.
In a statement shared via the Human Rights Campaign, Shepard said, “This unexpected honor has been very humbling for me, Dennis, and our family. What makes us proud is knowing our President and our nation share our lifelong commitment to making this world a safer, more loving, more respectful, and more peaceful place for everyone.
“I am grateful to everyone whose love and support for our work through the years has sustained me.
“If I had the power to change one thing, I can only dream of the example that Matt’s life and purpose would have shown, had he lived. This honor reminds the world that his life, and every life, is precious.”
Shepard was instrumental in working with then-President Barack Obama for passage of the landmark Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009, which was led in the House by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who will also be honored with a Presidential Medal of Freedom during the ceremony on Friday.
Also in 2009, Shepard published a memoir, “The Meaning of Matthew: My Son’s Murder in Laramie, and a World Transformed,” and was honored with the Black Tie Dinner Elizabeth Birch Equality Award.
“Judy Shepard has been a champion for equality and President Biden’s choice to honor her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom is a testament to what she’s done to be a force of good in the world,” HRC President Kelley Robinson said in a statement.
“A mother who turned unspeakable grief over the loss of her son into a decades-long fight against anti-LGBTQ+ hatred and violence, Judy continues to make a lasting impact in the lives of the LGBTQ+ community,” she said.
“It is because of her advocacy that the first federal hate crimes legislation became law and that countless life-saving trainings, resources and conversations about equality and acceptance are provided each year by the Matthew Shepard Foundation,” Robinson said. “We are honored that Judy is a member of the HRC family and know that her work to create a more inclusive and just world will only continue.”
Other awardees who will be honored by the White House this year are: Actor Michelle Yeoh, entrepreneur and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Jesuit Catholic priest Gregory Boyle, Assistant House Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), former Labor and Education Secretary and former U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.), journalist and former daytime talkshow host Phil Donahue, World War II veteran and civil rights activist Medgar Evers (posthumous), former Vice President Al Gore, civil rights activist and lawyer Clarence B. Jones, former Secretary of State and U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), former U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) (posthumous), Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky, educator and activist Opal Lee, astronaut and former director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center Ellen Ochoa, astronomer Jane Rigby, United Farm Workers President Teresa Romero, and Olympic athlete Jim Thorpe (posthumous).
National
United Methodist Church removes 40-year ban on gay clergy
Delegates also voted for other LGBTQ-inclusive measures
The United Methodist Church on Wednesday removed a ban on gay clergy that was in place for more than 40 years, voting to also allow LGBTQ weddings and end prohibitions on the use of United Methodist funds to “promote acceptance of homosexuality.”
Overturning the policy forbidding the church from ordaining “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” effectively formalized a practice that had caused an estimated quarter of U.S. congregations to leave the church.
The New York Times notes additional votes “affirming L.G.B.T.Q. inclusion in the church are expected before the meeting adjourns on Friday.” Wednesday’s measures were passed overwhelmingly and without debate. Delegates met in Charlotte, N.C.
According to the church’s General Council on Finance and Administration, there were 5,424,175 members in the U.S. in 2022 with an estimated global membership approaching 10 million.
The Times notes that other matters of business last week included a “regionalization” plan, which gave autonomy to different regions such that they can establish their own rules on matters including issues of sexuality — about which international factions are likelier to have more conservative views.
Rev. Kipp Nelson of St. Johns’s on the Lake Methodist Church in Miami shared a statement praising the new developments:
“It is a glorious day in the United Methodist Church. As a worldwide denomination, we have now publicly proclaimed the boundless love of God and finally slung open the doors of our church so that all people, no matter their identities or orientations, may pursue the calling of their hearts.
“Truly, all are loved and belong here among us. I am honored to serve as a pastor in the United Methodist Church for such a time as this, for our future is bright and filled with hope. Praise be, praise be.”
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