Celebrating Pride Month
Cooley is committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive environment – at the firm and in our communities – that values and celebrates all as their authentic selves. In honor of Pride Month 2022, Cooley asked some of the leaders we work with who are advocates and allies for the LGBTQ+ community to share a bit about their own stories and the impact of diversity, equity and inclusion, both personally and within their organizations.
Stay tuned for additional features throughout the month of June.
Pride Month is an important month to me and my family, as it celebrates our diversity as individuals and as a collective. Coming out in graduate school was only hard when it was time to tell my now 94-year-old mother. Her cousin died by suicide because he was gay, as the family did not understand how to accept and support. Thank goodness my mom came around. As an openly gay woman, married and with six kids, my gayness is a core part of my identity, just like my Blackness. With respect to being a founder, my gayness is just a part of who I am. I speak very openly about my wife, our kids and all that comes with our relationship. We have spoken about our gayness as it relates to family and children on NPR, and I proactively share with investors that I have a wife and kids, as I believe it demonstrates and fortifies my drive for success, which is rooted in my desire to take care of my family. The multiple identities that I carry have fueled my entrepreneurial journey, as my intersectionality provides the freedom to be who I am in both a personal and professional setting. In lieu of more gay friendly policies in corporate America, entrepreneurship is a natural safe place for anyone with a diverse background.
Melissa Bradley
Pride Month is a great time to celebrate the many accomplishments of LGBTQ+ individuals and community. However, as an open lesbian in a leadership position, I feel deep responsibility to live both my personal and professional life out and proud at all times, and I hope to empower others to do the same. My role as head of the global employment law function at Jazz Pharmaceuticals provides me with many wonderful opportunities to ensure that our employment policies, practices and programs encourage diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, in keeping with our corporate and personal commitments. In these ways, I feel that I make significant positive contributions to our workplace, and ultimately to our purpose of innovating to transform the lives of patients and their families.
Ann Polus
Pride Month for me is a reminder to dance through life even in the face of prejudice, criticism or ignorance. The diversity champions in my life have empowered me to manifest my purpose and passion to help the world bend towards justice. One of the proudest moments of my career was helping Grindr for Equality and local activists launch the one-of-a-kind HIV testing center locator and LGBTQ+ resource database in India.
Bill Shafton
