Minnesota-based Target is selling these Pride Month shirts to support the Family Equality Council.

“Neutrality” is the new buzzword among groups opposed to same-sex marriage. The Family Research Council would prefer Target “take a position of neutrality on the redefinition of marriage” instead of selling Pride Month t-shirts. One Million Moms has called on JC Penney to “remain neutral in the culture war,” rather than include same-sex families in their advertisements. And last week, the National Organization for Marriage sent a vaguely threatening letter to Minnesota’s 50 largest corporations urging them to sit out the debate on the state’s marriage inequality amendment:

As a cultural matter that has little to do with your corporate mission to serve customers, earn profits, and provide good jobs for the people of Minnesota we would request that _____ adopt a neutral stance on the Minnesota marriage amendment. We do not request that you endorse our efforts to protect the age-old definition of what is a marriage, but only that you stay neutral and respect the conscience rights of your customers and employees who are on both sides of the issue.[...]

Wading into a culture war over an issue where _____ has no business interest is to invite public backlash, much like what Starbucks is experiencing in the DumpStarbucks.com campaign, with little upside. Polls have put support for the Minnesota marriage amendment at 56% – higher than polls in North Carolina had support for the marriage amendment there just prior to the 61-39% victory for marriage in that state.[...]

We are carefully watching what _____ will do on this important measure, with the expectation that you will not be engaged on one side or the other. Please let us know if this is not the case.

It’s unclear which poll NOM is referring to, because the latest survey showed the discriminatory measure losing 43-49. Furthermore, the DumpStarbucks threat is a joke — only 44,338 people have pledged to dump Starbucks, whereas nearly 15 times as many people (650,000) eagerly thanked Starbucks for supporting marriage equality. In the weeks after NOM first launched its campaign, the company’s stock climbed significantly in value. Today, Starbucks publicly endorsed marriage equality in Australia, clearly not intimidated by NOM’s paltry protest.

More importantly, there’s no such thing as a “neutral” position that doesn’t still hurt the gay community. The term as used by anti-gay conservatives seems to derive from Minnesota’s largest school district, Anoka-Hennepin, where a “neutrality” policy prevented staff from discussing LGBT issues and thereby created a toxic bullying-ridden climate for gay and trans students. A policy of neutrality is a policy of invisibility, disregard, and shame. NOM’s use of such a red herring is both a sign of the organization’s anti-gay malevolence and desperation for support.

Lastly, NOM’s rationale that supporting marriage equality has “little to do with” corporate missions is simply wrong. Businesses do better when their LGBT employees are treated fairly, because they can recruit and retain more talented staff and market their spirit of inclusion to customers. Minnesota’s businesses should call NOM on its bluff and do what’s right for both their profits and the thousands of same-sex families who might patronize them: embrace equality for all.

In case the National Organization for Marriage has not significantly proven its intent to “drive a wedge” between racial groups by “fanning hostility,” its latest action is the most detestable yet. Today, NOM’s Brian Brown announced it will be exporting its Dump Starbucks campaign — a massive failure stateside — to countries that are significantly less supportive of LGBT rights:

BROWN: In our first week, we gained 25,000 pledge signers in the U.S. alone; today we go international, expanding DumpStarbucks.com campaigns into Mandarin, Arabic, Turkish, Spanish, and Bahala (one of the chief languages of Indonesia). DumpStarbucks.com online ads will also start running in Egypt, Beijing, Hong Kong, the Yunnan region of China, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman and Kuwait.

What happens in Seattle won’t to stay in Seattle. By making gay marriage core to his brand, Starbucks CEO Howard Schulz is telling millions of customers and partners who support traditional marriage in the Middle East, China, South America and North America that they aren’t truly part of the Starbucks community.

As Joe.My.God. notes, NOM is specifically targeting countries that criminalize homosexuality, like Kuwait and Oman, and even some that punish it with the death penalty, like the United Arab Emirates. The Dump Starbucks webpage tells its visitors that the coffee company’s support of marriage equality will “eliminate” the “definition of marriage between one man and one woman.” Sowing such seeds of fear in countries already opposed to homosexuality extends far beyond “fanning hostility” and could foster increased hostilities against people just for the coffee they choose to drink.

Meanwhile, the Human Rights Campaign and Freedom to Marry note that the Catholic Church hierarchy and its affiliates like the Knights of Columbus continue to be NOM’s biggest funders. And while millions of dollars are being funneled into race-dividing anti-gay strategies, soup kitchens, shelters, and other advocacy efforts are closing due to lack of funds, in many cases specifically as punishment by the Church for being LGBT-inclusive. In a letter to Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Freedom to Marry and HRC implore the Church to immediately stop funding NOM and supporting its “race-baiting, ethnic exploitation, division, and anti-gay campaigns.” With the expansion of the Dump Starbucks campaign, add “propagating violence” to that list.

The Pride logo Hands On refused to print.

A Kentucky t-shirt company called Hands On recently refused to print apparel for Lexington’s upcoming LGBT pride festival, claiming to be a Christian company. The Gay and Lesbian Services Organization of Lexington filed a complaint with the city’s Human Rights Commission, which protects against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. National conservative groups like Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council have picked up on the controversy and are defending Hands On, but in doing so reveal a clear intent to demonize and ostracize the LGBT community. Here are recent remarks by FRC’s Tony Perkins and the Family Foundation of Kentucky’s Kent Ostrander, as reported by FOTF’s CitizenLink:

PERKINS: Whether it’s a t-shirt company, wedding photographer, or the church, homosexuals will not be satisfied until they compel us to either spread their perversion or promote it. Unfortunately for these activists, the Constitution doesn’t award its rights on the basis of political correctness.

OSTRANDER: The sad part is that this family, because of this intimidation, bullying factor, might lose their business, or a substantial portion of it, because the University of Kentucky and the public schools side with the gay component (and may pull their business).  It’s just wrong for government to be involved in this.

Unfortunately for Perkins and Ostrander, the United States has a free market. That market is only free if all citizens have access to it, which is why non-discrimination laws exist. And if individuals wish to avoid a certain business because of its practices, that’s not “intimidation” — that’s life.

These conservatives’ complaints are ironic when juxtaposed with the National Organization for Marriage’s boycott of Starbucks over its support for marriage equality. The campaign continues to be a dismal failure, outpaced nearly 20 to 1 by the Thank You, Starbucks response and rebuffed by a a sharp increase in Starbucks’ stock value. Apparently, though, it is acceptable to challenge a business for supporting gay rights, but not for openly discriminating against gay people.

The National Organization for Marriage’s decision to boycott Starbucks for the company’s support of the freedom to marry has turned out to be a dismal failure. In the five days since NOM launched its “Dump Starbucks” petition, it has only gotten 19,000 signatures, compared to the nearly 250,000 individuals who have signed SumOfUs’s retaliatory “Thank You, Starbucks” card. In fact, SumOfUs has gotten over 8,000 new signers since 8:30 this morning.

Not only is NOM’s petition failing when it comes to numbers, it’s also failing when it comes to authenticity. As Jeremy Hooper has tracked, Dump Starbucks counts any information that is submitted, but that hasn’t stopped NOM from boasting about its campaign repeatedly all weekend. Worse yet, it seems that the site can’t even provide an accurate count of who is signing — either that or the organization is intentionally manipulating the numbers to make the petition look more successful that it is, which of course it isn’t anyway.

As NOM commits more resources to its Starbucks protest, it becomes all the more apparent how out-of-touch its anti-equality mission is with most Americans. Add your voice to those thanking Starbucks for supporting marriage equality, and enjoy the “Pump Starbucks” campaign’s new theme song:

A convenient excuse to cover up its crushing loss in New Hampshire yesterday, the National Organization for Marriage has launched a “Dump Starbucks” campaign in protest of the company’s support for marriage equality. The boycott’s website launched shortly after Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz rebuffed NOM’s complaints at a shareholders’ meeting yesterday:

SCHULTZ: I think Starbucks has many constituents, and from time to time we are going to make a decision that we think is consistent with the heritage and the tradition of the company that is perhaps maybe inconsistent with one group’s view of the world… We made that decision through the lens of humanity and being the kind of company that embraces diversity.

Starbucks came out in support of marriage equality in Washington state, where it’s based, and also recently joined an amicus brief in a case opposing the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act. The same can also be said for Google, Microsoft, Levi Strauss, and Nike, so expect additional boycotts to follow such as, “Give Up Google,” “Lose Your Levis,” and “Microsoft Off-it.” Plus, as Jeremy Hooper pointed out, one cannot dump Starbucks without first purchasing Starbucks, so the likelihood of the boycott making any headway is improbable.

Starbucks has joined other Washington-based companies like Microsoft and Nike in endorsing marriage equality. The company’s statement affirms its commitment to supporting its LGBT employees and working with organizations like the Pride Alliance Partner Network:

Starbucks is proud to join other leading Northwest employers in support of Washington State legislation recognizing marriage equality for same-sex couples. Starbucks strives to create a company culture that puts our partners first, and our company has a lengthy history of leading and supporting policies that promote equality and inclusion. [...]

We are deeply dedicated to embracing diversity and treating one another with respect and dignity, and remain committed to providing an inclusive, supportive and safe work environment for all of our partners.

We look forward to seeing this legislation enacted into law.

Since Gov. Christine Gregoire (D) announced her support for marriage equality earlier this month, the Washington Senate has quickly found the 25 votes necessary to pass the bill. Opponents have vowed to challenge the measure with a referendum.

This is not the first time Starbucks has stood up for marriage equality. Last November, it joined dozens of other companies in an amicus brief opposing the discriminatory Defense of Marriage Act.