Supporting an open Mozilla

Al Billings

I’m a proud Mozillian. I’ve worked at the Mozilla Corporation since June of 2007. I came there after working at Microsoft for nine years and was tired of working in a closed system that seemed to be designed for the good of a few people only. Working with my coworkers and the larger Mozilla Community composed of everyone interested in Mozilla (not just Firefox) and contributing to it has been a great boon to me over the last few years. It was a breath of fresh air.

One thing that I cannot abide is prejudicial actions within that community which go against its basic ethos of inclusiveness and betterment for the good of all. Today, a fellow community member decided to send a post to Planet Mozilla, the public face of the community through its blogs, that was prejudicial against the queer community.

As with quite a few others, I was outraged at this but, as the individual has said, it is his blog and he can say what he wants on it. He has his bully pulpit but, as it turns out, so do I.

I decided to respond today with this post but, more importantly, I also gave a donation to Equality California in the name of my fellow community member. Why Equality California? Well, I live here and we’re actively fighting a battle on the very issue, gay marriage, that was at the root of the person’s post. EC is very heavily engaged in this fight. As EC says on their site:

Equality California (EQCA) is the largest statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender rights advocacy organization in California. Over the past 13 years, Equality California has strategically moved California from a state with extremely limited legal protections for LGBT individuals to a state with some of the most comprehensive civil rights protections in the nation. Equality California has partnered with legislators and advocates to successfully sponsor more than 80 pieces of pro-equality legislation. EQCA continues to advance equality through legislative advocacy, electoral work, public education and community empowerment.

Another option, for UK community members, is Stonewall.

I encourage all Mozillians to donate to one of the many public organizations supporting equal rights for the LGBT community. This is the best way to send a message in support of inclusiveness and an open Mozilla community.