TIME: Gill Foundation
/Gill Foundation co-chair Scott Miller was quoted in the TIME article about the current state of the LGBT rights movement and its outlook for the year ahead. The article details the differing views among LGBT leaders about what can and should come next for the movement and highlights concerns that momentum from victories in 2015 will begin to stall or reverse in 2016.
In the article, Miller speaks to the Gill Foundation’s stance that a bipartisan approach is needed to further advance LGBT rights via state and federal legislation.
From the article…
Software entrepreneur Tim Gill and his husband Scott Miller plan to spend $130 million over the next five years on advocacy—on top of the $327 million they’ve already given. Corporate support for institutional LGBT groups remains solid; gay consumers, after all, are loyal to their friends.
Some of the effort in 2016 will be about persuading Republicans to come along, said Miller, the vice chairman of his family’s foundation. “We are going to need moderate and centrist Republicans who are on this issue with us,” Miller said. “The fact of the matter is the Congress is controlled by Republicans.”
For him, it’s not about whether he likes the people at the table or not. “We can either be ideological purists or we can be pragmatic,” said Miller. Not everyone agrees with that approach, even among those pushing for LGBT rights.
Republicans remain a tough sell. While most leading GOP White House hopefuls are reluctant to continue fighting this cultural shift, the rank-and-file voters remains frustrated at the fast change.
A handful of Republicans are trying to move their party, mostly behind the scenes. For instance, hedge fund giant Paul Singer is pushing the RNC to change its platform at this Summer’s convention in Cleveland to drop its anti-LGBT positions. That decision, ultimately, will be up to the nominee.
Read the full article at TIME.com.