Weighing In On Hallmark’s Gay Marriage Cards August 27, 2008

BRAVO HALLMARK CARDS! Congratulations on your BOLD step! It took courage to roll out Gay Marriage greeting cards! But alas, your announcement fell a little short of the social significance category when included in the annoucement was the admittance, “the move is a response to consumer demand, not any political pressure.”

Sooo, It’s really “Congratulations on a Smart Marketing Strategy.”

Maybe they read my post, “Gay Buying Power: A Force To Be Reckoned WIth”

see: https://msqueer.wordpress.com/2008/08/24/gay-buying-power-a-force-to-be-reckoned-with/

After all, what company in their right profit-seeking minds wouldn’t want to snag a share of the $600 Billion combined buying power of an estimated 15.3 million lesbian and gay consumers? (2006 survey)

But whether the “when you care to send the very best” company intended to or not, it has set itself down right in the middle of right-wing conservative Americans’ vehement anti-gay campaign with a backlash of opinions and proposed boycotts hitting the internet minutes after the initial announcement.

Ya gotta give them conservatives some points for vigilance. They don’t miss a beat – not a moment – no matter how fleeting – when it comes to monitoring the “spread of the gay agenda” in America.

Gay Agenda – now that’s an interesting concept, too. I wonder what it would take for all of us to agree on one specified agenda? Let’s not spill the beans, since they think we’re so organized. Paranoia has been known to affect judgement, not to mention eyesight and the other senses. I have to admit I feel for them sometimes. Living under all that constant stress of feeling threatened by the “Gay Plague” has got to be exhausting. I bet they spend alot of their consumer buying power on high blood pressure medicine.

Anyway, Kudos to Hallmark – regardless of their motivations. They may not have meant to jump into the deep end, but they’re certainly in the swim now! 

Hope you guys have good life preservers and can tread water for a reasonably long time – at least long enough to outlast all the clammer that has and will arise from this somewhat bold move. Take a page out of Proctor and Gamble’s playbook. Zealots thought they were in cahoots with the devil because their logo was supposed to be “satanic symbology.”  P&G outlived them and you’ll do just fine too. -MsQueer

©2008 MsQueer.com and Deborah Adler. All rights reserved.

Here’s the story from AP as reported by CBS News:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/08/21/business/main4369335.shtml 

Hallmark Introduces Gay Marriage Cards

Largest U.S. Greeting Card Company Says It’s Responding To Consumer Demand

PORTLAND, Ore., Aug. 21, 2008

 

Most states don’t recognize gay marriage – but now Hallmark does.

 

The nation’s largest greeting card company is rolling out same-sex wedding cards – featuring two tuxedos, overlapping hearts or intertwined flowers, with best wishes inside. “Two hearts. One promise,” one says.

 

Hallmark added the cards after California joined Massachusetts as the only U.S. states with legal gay marriage. A handful of other states have recognized same-sex civil unions.

 

The language inside the cards is neutral, with no mention of wedding or marriage, making them also suitable for a commitment ceremony. Hallmark says the move is a response to consumer demand, not any political pressure.

 

“It’s our goal to be as relevant as possible to as many people as we can,” Hallmark spokeswoman Sarah Gronberg Kolell said.

 

Hallmark’s largest competitor, Cleveland-based American Greetings Corp., has no plans to enter the market, saying its current offerings are general enough to speak to a lot of different relationships.

 

Hallmark started offering “coming out” cards last year, and the four designs of same-sex marriage cards are being gradually released this summer and will be widely available by next year. No sales figures were available yet.

“When I have shopped for situations like babies or weddings for gay friends I have good luck in quirky stores,” said Kathryn Hamm, president of the Web site gayweddings.com.

“But if you are just in a generic store … the bride and groom symbol or words are in most cards,” she said. “It becomes difficult to find some that are neutral but have some style.”

The Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law estimates that more than 85,000 same-sex couples in the United States have entered into a legal relationship since 1997, when Hawaii started offering some legal benefits to same-sex partners.

It estimates nearly 120,000 more couples will marry in California during the next three years – and that means millions of potential dollars for all sorts of wedding-industry businesses.

Hallmark, known more for its Midwest mores than progressive greetings, has added a wider variety lately. It now offers cards for difficulty getting pregnant or going through rehab.

It pulled a controversial card that featured the word “queer” in the punch line after it was criticized by some customers and gay magazine The Advocate last year. At any given time, Hallmark has 200 different wedding cards on the market, including some catering to interracial or inter-religious marriages and blended families.

The Greeting Card Association, a trade group, says it does not track how many companies provide same-sex cards but believes the number is expanding.

“The fact that you have someone like Hallmark going into that niche shows it’s growing and signals a trend,” said Barbara Miller, a spokeswoman for the association.

Rob Fortier, an independent card maker who runs his company, Paper Words, out of New York, added same-sex wedding cards to his mix after thinking about what he would want to receive.

“A lot of people think a gay greeting card needs a rainbow on it,” Fortier said. “I don’t want that.”

But for some time, it was difficult to even find the words for what anyone wanted to say, he said.

His first card poked fun at the challenge. On the outside it featured lines that had been scratched out: “Congratulations on being committed!”, “Congratulations on being unionized!” and, finally, “Congratulations on being domestically partnered!” The inside wished the couple congratulations on choosing to be together forever.

“It really comes down to language,” he said.

John Stark, one of the three founders of Three Way Design in Boston, which makes gay-themed cards for occasions from adoption to weddings, has several new designs sketched out and ready.

But he has hesitated adding more wedding cards to his mix until after the November election, when California voters will decide a constitutional amendment that would again limit marriage to a man and a woman in the state.

“What is scary is to produce a marriage line and then November comes and it’s recalled, then we have thousands of dollars of inventory waiting,” he said.

The gay-friendly business can be challenging, companies said.

Hamm said although she has found many vendors willing to work with her company, some have asked to be removed from the Web site because of hate mail or some other backlash.

Hallmark says all of its stores can choose whether they want to add the latest offerings.

 

 

 

 

 

 

© MMVIII The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

 This photo provided by Hallmark shows a same-sex wedding greeting card. Hallmark added the cards after California joined Massachusetts as the only U.S. states with legal gay marriage. (AP PHOTO)

Gay Buying Power: A Force To Be Reckoned With August 24, 2008

Consider that with the political climate still being somewhat less than accepting today, the number of “out” LGBT persons is merely the tip of the iceberg. 

Now consider this: In 2006, an estimated 15.3 million Lesbian and Gay consumers had a combined buying power of over 600 Billion Dollars. 

According to source Harris/Witeck-Combs, 72% of LGBT consumers prefer to buy from companies that advertise to them directly; 

89% are highly likely to seek out brands advertised to them, and a majority will pay a premium for quality products and services (source: Simmons). 

The median combined household income of gay couples is 60% higher than opposite-sex couples (source: OpusComm Group);

Compared to the national average, gay people are three times more likely to choose to live in racially, ethically and culturally diverse communities (source: Gertler and Vinodrai);

Creative and innovative people driving the tech economy seek places high in cultural, racial and ethnic diversity, including gays and lesbians (source: Gary Gates and Brookings Institute).

Reference article: http://www.expressmilwaukee.com/article-2374-the-gay-and-lesbian-market.html

Here are some additional facts from the Outlook Media 2007 Media Kit. (Outlook Weekly is “a lifestyle and advocacy publication for the Ohio queer community.” )

“Gay Americans are twice as likely to have graduated from college, twice as likely to have an individual income over $60,000 and twice as likely to have a household income of $250,000 or more!”

“According to Harris Interactive Research, gay purchasing power is expected to top $690 Billion Dollars in 2007!”

That’s a lot of purchasing power, not to mention, a lot of potential influence. Today, more than ever, LGBT people need to look at how to wield our “buying power.”  How, where, when and why we focus our dollars needs to be about more than choosing a car, vacation, or beer…

There are gay philanthropists making the news this election year for their work in helping to support candidates and issues that are lgbt-friendly. We need more of this on a local and national level. 

I found an excellent article on Bettys’List – LGBT News and Services titled, “The Rising Tide: Philanthropy & Volunteerism in the LGBT Community” 

Ref= http://www.bettyslist.com/rising-tide.php?a=1569  -MsQueer

©2008 MsQueer.com. All rights reserved.

Philanthropy and Political Advocacy

By Jeff Lewy

Philanthropy, as we’ve noted in earlier articles, is a way to support and promote social change.  That change is lasting when it transforms the attitudes of individuals, one at a time, until society as a whole is transformed.

However, philanthropy by itself cannot ensure the implementation of social change.  We need to promote political change as well, so that the attitudes and ideas of the public are implemented widely and promptly.

As someone with philanthropic and charitable feelings, you are probably thinking: “It’s common knowledge that philanthropy is tax-deductible – and that political action isn’t.  So I can’t do anything about politics, because the IRS won’t let me, since political contributions aren’t tax-deductible.”  However, that “common” knowledge has two serious flaws.  

The first flaw is failing to fully participate in the political process, beyond voting.  And you ARE voting, aren’t you?   Remember – political giving is a vital element in electing political candidates who are in tune with current social attitudes and will support the changes you desire. Even though giving to candidates isn’t tax-deductible, it is an important way to see that the changes you value come to pass.  So give to the political candidates and organizations of your choice.  It can be money wisely spent to create and promote social change.

The second flaw is a common misunderstanding about what nonprofit organizations are allowed to do.  It is true that these organizations may not directly support or contribute to political candidates.  But they can engage in political advocacy to promote the social changes they espouse.

What does political advocacy mean?  Plenty!  A short list of activities in political advocacy includes:

• Lobbying to influence legislation
• Lobbying to influence decisions by administrative agencies
• Litigation
• Research and study
• Nonpartisan analysis
• Legislative comment (without a specific call to action)
• Polling
• Public education

These activities cover a lot of ground.  Many nonprofits work hard and successfully in all these areas, within the rules and limitations that govern their activities.  These organizations understand their limitations and will be glad to explain what you and they can (and can’t) do to help in the important work of political advocacy.  

In recent years, attitudes held by individuals throughout the country have become more favorable to LGBT people and our rights.  A majority now believes that LGBT couples should have many of the same rights as married couples, even if they don’t want to call it “marriage.”  A majority sees the benefits to society of allowing adoption and foster parenting by LGBT couples, preventing employment and housing discrimination, and ensuring hospital visitation, end-of-life decisions and inheritance by LGBT partners.

However, even if individual attitudes are changed, public institutions must change as well, if those new attitudes are to truly prevail.  Many public institutions are governments, so political activity is required to bring needed changes to reality.  Public acceptance must be translated into laws and administrative procedures before it becomes fully integrated and effective.

In these times when politicians on the right use the LGBT community as a wedge issue to distract voters from the important issues presented at the ballot box, we need to respond strongly to protect ourselves and to educate others not to impose restrictions on us that fly in the face of this country’s long and sometimes halting progress toward justice and equality.

In this sense, “politics” includes all branches of government – executive, legislative, and judicial, and all levels of government, from national to local.

Progress has occurred in many ways.  LGBT rights have made significant strides in the judicial arena; just think of the effect of Lawrence v. Texas, which decriminalized sodomy and affirmed our rights of privacy and sexual activity.  And the courts in Massachusetts have affirmed same-sex marriage in that state.

But there are many situations where public acceptance is thwarted by public officials – here in California, San Francisco’s action to affirm same-sex marriage was overturned by the state courts (although that battle isn’t over).  In 2005, the California Legislature passed a bill to make same-sex marriage legal in California – but the Governor vetoed the bill.

We can all think of many examples where the public’s acceptance of social change is not implemented.

So get involved, with your money and your volunteer time.  Consider donating to politicians, political organizations AND to nonprofit organizations that are doing the work for our rights.  And vote, every chance you get – in every local, primary, and general election!

2006 is an election year.  Elections make a huge difference in creating and implementing social change.  Get involved – as a citizen, and as a philanthropist.  Your future depends on it.

-MsQueer

©2008 MsQueer.com and Deborah Adler. All rights reserved.