More than 500 U.S. corporations have
joined the Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) Business Coalition for the
Equality Act.
HRC announced the milestone last week,
saying that the Business Coalition is “the largest business
coalition to ever come together in support of legal LGBTQ+ equality.”
The Equality Act, which seeks to add
sexual orientation and gender identity to current civil rights laws,
stalled out in the Senate after clearing the House. President Joe
Biden has endorsed the legislation.
According to HRC, more than 160 Fortune
500 companies have joined its Business
Coalition.
“The 503 member companies of HRC’s
Business Coalition for the Equality Act represent a major swath of
America’s economic engine, with member companies overseeing
business operations in all 50 states, company headquarters spanning
33 states and a combined $7.2 trillion in annual revenue,” the
group said. “The 503 members of the coalition collectively employ
more than 15.3 million people in the United States.”
HRC added that the largest previous
business effort in support of legal LGBTQ equality was an amicus
brief to the Supreme Court in support of same-sex marriage, which
included 379 businesses.
The Business Coalition for the Equality
Act surpassed 400 members in April 2021.
According to recent polling, 70 percent
of Americans, including 50 percent of Republicans, support the
Equality Act.