Will Global Companies Step In On Russia's Antigay Laws?

Dozens of major global corporations with internal nondiscrimination policies, including Apple, Chevron, and Procter & Gamble are being urged to call on the Russian government to repeal its antigay policies. The National Center for Lesbian Rights launched a petition drive after Russia has started enforcing several laws and policies to suppress LGBT people, including a so-called antipropaganda law and a proposal to remove children from households with gay parents.

"Russia's appalling treatment of LGBT people has taken a shocking turn with the passage of these horrific laws," NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell said in a statement Thursday. "In the wake of these laws, discrimination and violence against the LGBT community in Russia are utterly unchecked. We cannot sit on our hands and do nothing. If we are to ever live in a world where the security and safety of our LGBT brothers and sisters are ensured no matter where they live, we must fight back in every way we can."

The petition will be issued to the CEOs of the following companies to end financial and business ties related to Russia: 3M, Accenture, Akin Gump, American Express, Apple, Avon, Baker & McKenzie, Boeing, Booz Allen Hamilton, Boston Consulting Group, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Cargill, Chevron, Cisco, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dell, Deloitte, Deutsche Bank, Diageo, Eli Lilly & Company, Ernst & Young, GlaxoSmithKline, Goldman Sachs, Google, HP, IBM, ING, Intel, Johnson & Johnson, KPMG, Microsoft, Morgan Stanley, Oracle, PepsiCo, PwC, Procter & Gamble, Qualcomm, and Xerox.

As of Friday morning, more than 7,700 people have signed the Change.org petition.