To close out Pride month, three Congress members introduced a bipartisan, nonbinding resolution this week to highlight the economic firepower LGBT business owners bring to the American economy.
U.S. Reps. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), and Mark Pocan (D-Wisc.), introduced House Resolution 969, “recognizing the accomplishments and the economic contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender entrepreneurs and small business owners.”
The numbers tell the story: an estimated 1.4-million LGBT-owned businesses nationwide that have created more than 33,000 jobs; businesses that survive an average of 12 years — seven years above the national average; and an estimated $1.7 trillion in combined economic power of all LGBT-owned businesses. The success comes despite discrimination in most states in employment, housing and access to public services.
The National LGBT Chamber of Commerce, the D.C.-based advocacy group serving as the business voice of the LGBT community, is one of the forces behind the resolution as part of its mission to ensure that all LGBT entrepreneurs have the same access to resources and opportunities, which benefits the country as a whole.
Later this summer, the NGLCC will host the nation’s single-largest LGBT business conference here in Philadelphia, expected to draw thousands of participants. Even with the demonstrable success of LGBT-owned businesses despite the obstacles in the United States, it is critical for LGBT-owned and certified businesses to show up here and be counted.
The goal of equality for all is not only a moral imperative, but also a financial one.