Sexuality and The City: the UK's corporate closet

An interesting article ran recently on the British financial news site thisismoney addressing the topic of homosexuality in big business. The piece was of course spurred by the recent resignation of BP chief Lord John Browne, who stepped down from his post after being publicly outed in order to "avoid scandal" -- although if you're quitting your job because newspapers are writing about you, then I think that particular horse is already out of the barn.

The article (which is actually reprinted from its sister paper, The Evening Standard) is interesting in that it focuses not on the "scandal" around Browne's voluntary self-sack, but on the fact that homophobia in big business (what in the UK is referred to as "The City") is pretty much ruining people's lives, Browne included.

Author Keith Dovkants begins by musing on why a man would quit his job merely because people were speculating about his sexuality, listing a dozen high-profile and openly gay Brits -- but then notes that there are only two out gay people in senior positions at major institutions.

Even by the law of averages, that is clearly absurd. Ashley Steel, an openly lesbian member of accountants KPMG's management board, said she was 'gobsmacked' by the dearth of people from the Square Mile on the so-called Pink List. 'Where were the legal firms in that list?' she asked. 'Where were the other accounting firms in that list? And where were all the banks and insurance companies?'

Dovkants finds this staggering in this day and age, noting:

It's bizarre. Here are some of the most successful people in the land afraid to declare what plenty of others do every day - and no one minds.

No doubt! The article then goes on to profile several prominent businessmen who have been either fired, humiliated, or otherwise tormented because of their sexuality, and paints a picture of an "old-boy" culture that seems to be decades behind in terms of social acceptance.

While this is nothing new to most of us -- and the article allows that this certainly isn't the only industry where homophobia still has a foothold -- it is interesting to see a financial publication run a piece that is so sympathetic to the plight of gay professionals. And taking into account that The Evening Standard is one of London's biggest dailies that positions itself as being in touch with the pulse of the people makes it even more encouraging -- Dovkants' apparently genuine surprise that anyone should care about the sexuality of their co-workers communicates quite a progressive view of the issue.