Metro Weekly

The Silence of the Gay CEOs

“[G]ay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender executives face separate challenges breaking through the so-called pink ceiling. Their differences are often invisible. In some places, discrimination camouflaged as business strategy — “We’re tolerant, but our customers might not be” — is considered acceptable. Even as the gay rights movement progresses at a faster clip than civil rights movements before it, there is an overwhelming pressure in the workplace to hide one’s sexual orientation.

English: Rainbow flag flapping in the wind wit...
English: Rainbow flag flapping in the wind with blue skies and the sun. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

— From a piece in the Sunday New York Times by Clair Miller discussing the lack of out gay chief executives in the nation’s top 1,000 companies. Miller goes on to point out that “it is no wonder that closeted employees have difficulty advancing at their companies. They report feeling distracted at work, avoiding certain clients or co-workers, skipping company social events and having a difficult time finding mentors — all of which can have a direct result on career advancement.” (New York Times)

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