Gay: A New Path Forward
by Nicolas Janovsky
WingSpan Press

What we talk about when we talk about ‘Gay’.
For too long, the topic of being Gay has long lived under the rock of discrimination, ignorance and misunderstanding.  In his new book, Gay: A New Path Forward, author Nicolas Janovsky reaches out to non-Gays with detailed descriptions of Gay life and attitudes.  He explains terminology and various aspects of Gay culture through true personal stories of Gay men and women who have struggled with the shame and difficulty of being Gay in a critical and misunderstanding world.
With Gay: A New Path Forward, the author hopes to enlighten non-Gays by offering them ways to talk to and about Gays in their lives.  Through this, Nicolas aims to put an end to the stereotyping that plagues everyday language and society and that sets Gays apart from the rest of humanity.  The author contends that if society could talk about Gays the way they talk about race, non-Gays would soon discover that their Gay friends and family members were just like them.  Nicolas hopes that all individuals would be noted as different in the same manner that people are short, tall, white, black, smart but not otherwise different just because of their sexuality.

From the wealth of information shared in Gay: A New Path Forward, the author hopes to forge a new path for Gays and non-Gays alike, inspiring them to learn from, talk and interact openly with one another.  As part of his explanation of Gay culture, Nicolas offers intriguing looks into several of the Gay hotspot neighborhoods in America such as the Boystown district in Chicago and the Chelsea district in New York City, and encourages readers to dip into the wealth of culture and fun available in those locations.
Author Nicolas Janovsky is a native Floridian, and a proud resident of the Gay Tampa suburb of the historic Ybor City district, known locally as GaYbor.  Nicolas is openly Gay and works to bring others, Gay and non-Gay alike, into the light of understanding.  “Spending time looking for what is missing in your life is futile; if you fail to look within yourself,” he says, “When we challenge everything we believe we are… we reveal that which we never knew about our own selves.”

Gay: A New Path Forward is published by WingSpan Press, www.wingspanpress.com and is available from Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com in hardcover (ISBN 978-1-59594-406-1, $26.00), paperback (ISBN 978-1-59594-454-2, $18.00) and Kindle ($9.95)

G1: “Completely Out”
Within this most supportive and accepting environment operates some of the worlds the most admired and successful companies. Coincidentally, these are the same companies that often deliver excellent financial results. Great results are directly related to their corporate culture of inclusion, leading to positive public perception. Such companies are viewed positively for being wiser than our times. Yet, all these environments’ ringmasters have done is operate with integrity and deliver results all while embracing and being all that is naturally you! Starbucks and Apple, along with a few other companies, have enacted accepting environments, and, are trailblazers for equality in working environments. Let me ask you a blunt question: are you shocked when you walk into a Starbucks or an Apple store and see an openly Gay employee? NO! You almost expect it. More importantly, do you care? No! Does this expected presence give you anything other than a positive perception of the company these Gay employees work for? Nope! As you have an “ah ha” moment here, my exact point is: you translate this way of conducting business as the most positive operational standard of corporate entities. In fact these two companies have done nothing more than say be Gay, but still do your job. Be freely, openly Gay and be that way while you perform to our expectations. On Starbucks.com, inside it’s “about us” section proclaims:
“Starbucks is dedicated to creating a workplace that values and respects people from diverse backgrounds, and enables its employees to do their best work. We honor the unique combination of talents, experiences and perspectives of each partner, making Starbucks success possible.”

Further:
“As such we expect our partners to act with a spirit of kinship, tolerance and humanity toward all customers making our brand welcoming to everyone.”
I think that sums up my point nicely. I would also like to add, I firmly believe their statement and have seen it in effect first-hand, having worked for Starbucks Coffee Company North America as a store manager. This was the first time I felt comfortable in my own skin while working simply because of their corporate culture of inclusion.
Apple and Starbucks have garnered widespread respect for their ultra-inclusive, professional corporate operations. Of course, the majority of people given this freedom and inclusion conduct themselves with taste and class. For some facts and solid information to back this up, The Human Rights Coalition, (HRC) corporate equality index for 2010, gave both Apple Inc and Starbucks a 100% on their equality report card. Companies such as these two have set the standard for most of corporate America.

Two, G2 is: “Acknowledgement”
The second way, G2, is a middle of the road, semi-comfortable zone that Gays are acknowledged in. You can’t be fully, freely out, but you are acknowledged and therefore feel comfortable discussing your culture, boyfriend or girlfriend at work, to an extent. This is where the majority of corporate America operates, as is required by the public’s consumer power. The majority of U.S. citizens would flex their consumer muscle by choosing to spend their incomes elsewhere than a bigoted and discriminatory company.
Racial discrimination, the closest and most similar form of discrimination compared to Gay discrimination demonstrates the need and public demand for companies to operate in corporate cultures of inclusion.

G3: “Closeted”
G3 is the third and most debilitating way of existence in the professional world/corporate America. For example, DADT- Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. This is the Military’s policy of mandating that sexual identity be withheld. Did any of us truly believe there weren’t lesbians serving in the Air force? Or that Gay men weren’t serving our country within the Army? No one was fooled that Gays proudly and honorably served, yet they were mandated to hide who they are or face a humiliating discharge. This shameful act of hiding one’s true self at work, from peers and superiors is wildly unacceptable. In a homophobic or un-accepting, non-acknowledging environment (G3), Gays are suppressed and fear ridicule and discrimination. This begins a downward spiral of depleting self-esteem and further threatens a person’s mental and physical well being.

Some individuals become trapped in these environments because their psyche is drastically damaged from having to live as a second-class citizen by being Gay, which is just the same as racial inequality suppressed groups based on race. A G3 environment suppresses Gays. And on top of that, a person is now working in a job that they are terrified of being themselves at. The integrity of their armor is damaged, so many continue on this destructive professional career path to nowhere far too long. G3 environments kill dreams and destroy hope. I have personally worked in a G3 environment for an unmentioned company that today I believe has done a better job broadening their policies than my horrific experiences as a teenage employee in the 1990’s, always fearing I would be exposed for who I am. Thus, I existed in G3 and went to extreme lengths, concealing that I was a Gay male. I will leave this home improvement company unnamed.