The Business Case for Social Leadership: Companies Protest Indiana and Arkansas Laws - The Minute

Protests against laws in Indiana and Arkansas that could allow discrimination against gay couples are coming from a broad spectrum of the business community. Tech companies like Apple, Salesforce.com, Twitter, Yelp, and Square, not known for their public engagement with social issues, have spoken out against the laws. Business-as-usual NASCAR and the NCAA, which is headquartered in Indianapolis, have voiced their concern. Eli Lilly and Angie’s List, both also headquartered in Indianapolis, have announced their opposition. So have several national conventions—a $4.4 billion four industry that supports 75,000 jobs in Indiana—the state’s Chamber of Commerce, and other business leaders. In Arkansas, companies from Walmart to Acxiom, a technology company based in Little Rock that employs 1,600 workers, have spoken against that state’s bill.

These protests from such a variety of businesses—and ones without an explicit social mission—show that today’s companies are engaged as never before with the urgent issues of our time. Business now exercises a level of social leadership that has replaced political activity as the go-to action arena for progressive change in our culture.

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