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Books Tue Feb 19 2013
Area Transgender Woman Featured in New Anthology by Out & Equal
After 20 years working as a Human Resources Director and Business Partner at a major corporation, Chicagoland resident Lori Fox quit her job. As a closeted transgender woman, she could no longer stand working in a business culture that didn't protect or support gender identity and expression.
After coming out at work in the corporate diversity office (which ultimately led to her
leaving), and also coming out to her family, Fox found success on her own terms--those that allowed her to be herself, completely. She started Lori Fox Diversity Consulting and now works with human resources and management departments at large corporations to create cultures of inclusion. She also consults with individuals to help guide their personal and professional transitions.
Fox's is just one of 36 stories featured in Out & Equal at Work: From Closet to Corner Office, released last week (on Valentine's Day) by the national non-profit Out & Equal. Showcasing stories and essays by major business leaders who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or allied, the anthology aims to advance LGBT rights in the workplace, and illustrate how companies thrive when individuals are free to be authentic.
Fox's story, which details how she helped her mother understand her gender identity, runs along essays by executives from Dell, Prudential and Disneyland Resort, among others.
Fox writes: "Organizations that genuinely support and value difference and inclusion at all levels of their employee ranks will proactively establish workplace policies, practices, and benefits that positively impact recruitment, staffing, and retention of all individuals, including transgender women and men."
Purchase the book from the Out & Equal website. You can also see Lori Fox talk, along with Emma Vosicky and Ean Behr, at Open & Affirming: A Transgender Panel at First Congregational Church in Glen Ellyn, 535 Forest Ave., on Wednesday, February 24 at 7pm.
