No more Bathroom Bills!
38 CEO’s across Texas and across industries are speaking up about how the so called “Bathroom Bills” currently going through the legislature are bad for business and bad for Texas.
Dear Gov. Abbott, Speaker Straus, Lt. Gov. Patrick, and Members of the Texas Legislature:
As leaders of Texas’ successful and growing tech and startup community, we write in opposition to the proposed “bathroom bills” currently being considered in the Texas Legislature.
Every day, we recruit the best and brightest talent from across the world to bring their ideas and innovations to Texas — but the nature of their work allows them to locate almost anywhere. Culture and a community’s commitment to diversity and inclusion thus become essential factors in where innovators choose to live and grow their businesses. These factors are more important to the workforce of today and tomorrow than they were of the workforce of previous generations.
Discriminatory legislation will damage the business-friendly reputation that has allowed us to build innovative technology and startup communities in all corners of the state. Therefore, we urge you to oppose these bills and instead focus on issues that have allowed Texas to be a leader in the innovation economy.
Sincerely,
Gene Austin
CEO, Bazaarvoice in Austin
Joshua Baer
Executive Director, Capital Factory in Austin
Tom Ball
General Partner, Next Coast Ventures in Austin
John Berkowitz
CEO, Ojo Labs in Austin
Bill Blackstone
General Manager, Galvanize in Austin
Trey Bowles
CEO, Dallas Entrepreneur Center (The DEC) in Dallas
Sara Brand
General Partner, True Wealth Venture Partners in Austin
Barbary Brunner
CEO, Austin Technology Council in Austin
Heather Brunner
CEO, WP Engine in Austin
Jason Cohen
CTO, WP Engine in Austin
Chelsea Collier
CEO of Intercambio in Austin
Gordon Daugherty
Managing Director, Capital Factory in Austin
David Edmonson
Executive Director, Austin Tech Alliance in Austin
Rod Favaron
CEO, Spredfast in Austin
Morgan Flager
General Partner, Silverton Partners in Austin
Hugh Forrest
Director of Programming, SXSW in Austin
Richard Garriott
CEO, Portalarium in Austin
steve goldsmith
Head of HipChat at Atlassian in Austin
Steve Guengerich
Principal, Powershift Group in Dallas
Dan Graham
CEO, Notley Ventures in Austin
Erik Huddleston
CEO, Trendkite in Austin
Brett Hurt
CEO, data.world in Austin
Preston L. James, II
CEO, DivInc in Austin
Brian Jones
CEO, GetHealthy in Austin
Nick Kennedy
President, Surf Airlines Inc. in Dallas
Matt Mullenweg
CEO, Automattic in Houston
Chris Pacitti
General Partner, AVX Partners in Austin
Mellie Price
Director of Diversity and Inclusion, Capital Factory in Austin
John S. Reale, Jr.
CEO, Station Houston in Houston
Joe Ross
President, CSID in Austin
Amos Schwartzfarb
Managing Director, Techstars in Austin
Eugene Sepulveda
CEO, Entrepreneur’s Foundation of Central Texas
Venu Shamapant
General Partner, Live Oak Venture Partners in Austin
Justin Siegel
Mentor & Angel Investor, Capital Factory in Austin
Joah Spearman
CEO, Localeur in Austin
Krishna Srinivasan
General Partner, Live Oak Venture Partners in Austin
Stephen Straus
Managing Partner, Kung Fu in Austin
Andy Tryba
CEO, Crossover in Austin
Tyson Tuttle
CEO, Silicon Labs in Austin
Zeynep Young
CEO, Milk & Honey Spa in Austin
