Mark David Gibson spoke at the Texas Equality Business Conference. (David Taffet/Dallas Voice)

The North Texas GLBT Chamber of Commerce held its annual Texas Equality Business Conference yesterday at Toyota’s new U.S. headquarters in Plano. Angela Hale, Cece Cox and Shelly Skeen opened the conference. Mark David Gibson, author of Served in Silence, delivered the keynote address during lunch.

Hale explained the strategy for the next legislative session. She said they’re hoping the bathroom bill doesn’t reappear but are preparing for a barrage of bills that include religious refusal legislation and laws rolling back local nondiscrimination ordinances.

Skeen provided a number of statistics. According to the Williams Institute, 770,000 adults in Texas, or 3.8 percent of the population, identify as LGBT. In addition, 158,500 youth do as well. Included in those numbers are 125,330 transgender adults or .66 percent of the population. Texas had 83,000 same-sex couples with 18 percent of those couples raising an adopted child, compared to only 3 percent of straight couples.

All of Williams Institute’s numbers are estimates because there has never been a census question on sexual orientation and local municipalities in Texas don’t keep track of how many marriage licenses have been issued to same-sex or opposite-sex couples.

From actual surveys are stats that rank Texas 39th on public support for LGBT rights, and that indicate that 79 percent of Texans believe LGBT people experience discrimination.

Of the estimated number of trans adults, 34 percent live in poverty and 17 percent are unemployed.

Texas is one of five states, Skeen said, that provide absolutely no protection for LGBT people in public accommodations, housing or employment.

The conference offered a variety of workshops. The Anti-Defamation League did a session determining the difference between implicit and explicit bias.

Dale Holdman’s workshop included a diversity of experiences, values and beliefs to help participants understand working with people of opposite personality types.

EY’s Trust in the Workplace workshop discussed how trust levels vary by generation as well as by country.

Congressional candidate Lorie Burch kept her attorney hat on to discuss the importance of estate planning. By eliciting a variety of answers to questions about what would happen under different circumstances, she showed the importance of receiving professional guidance.

Gibson, whose book is about living authentically after having served in the Air Force under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, works for the Small Business Administration. The SBA sees the value of LGBT businesses, includes them in its diversity programs and is looking to broaden its ties with the community.

— David Taffet

The Pride flag flew at Toyota headquarters in Plano.