5 questions with Paul von Wupperfeld
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Paul von Wupperfeld is an officer with the GLBT employee group, LEGEND, at Texas Instruments. He was elected regional chair of the DFW chapter of Out and Equal, an organization focused on improving policies and benefits for GLBT people in the workplace. He is the former Texas state president for Log Cabin Republicans but changed parties several years ago. Last year he helped his partner of 16 years, Andy Smith, in Smith’s campaign for the Texas Legislature.
How long have you lived in Dallas?
I moved to Dallas from Austin in 1995 when I was hired by Texas Instruments. But my mother and her family are from Dallas, so I spent a lot of time here when I was growing up.
What do you do at Texas Instruments?
My actual job title is worldwide manager of employee communications for analogue. I work with employees and executives at two of our largest businesses on improving communicatons between employees and management.
How long have you been involved with Out and Equal DFW?
Texas Instrument’s GLBT employee group, LEGEND, was contacted by the national Out and Equal organization when talk first started about forming a local affiliate here in North Texas. I attended the very first meeting and was involved in getting the local affiliate launched back in 2004. It has been inactive for awhile, but we are working to get it re-energized and to broaden its base
What do you hope to accomplish as regional chair of Out and Equal?
My goal will be to try and go a comprehensive evaluation of the environment for GLBT employees at major corporations here in the DFW area. I know some companies have terrific policies, and some still have a ways to go. I want to get the employees at companies with strong policies working with the employees at other companies that still need to improve their policies.
Why did you leave Log Cabin and the Republican Party to become a Democrat?
Over time, I came to the decision that the work Log Cabin was doing within the Republican Party was really going nowhere, and that if I wanted to make a more positive impact politically, I needed to become active as a Democrat.
Soundout is a weekly column featuring people whose jobs and interests have an impact on the daily lives of members of the GLBT community. It features those who often go unnoticed by the press and community. If you’d like to recommend someone to cover in this column, contact staff writer Tammye Nash at nash@dallasvoice.com.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, July 28, 2006.