We thank him for all he has done for the Chamber and Nashville.
Jim's work with the Chamber was featured in the article.
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Joe Woolley
, CEO of the Nashville LGBT Chamber, remembers meeting Gingrich at AllianceBernstein’s 2018 holiday party, hosted at the 505 tower. They were standing in a small group, talking about the risks that would come with Tennessee passing a version of North Carolina’s infamous bathroom bill, when Woolley challenged Gingrich to speak out if such legislation was filed during the 2019 legislative session.
Woolley called upon Gingrich for his public support as a series of bills some saw as discriminatory began moving through the Legislature. Gingrich became the first executive to publicly oppose the bills.
“The bills being debated in the current session of [the] Legislature send a clear message to certain constituencies that they are not welcome. Other states have tried to pass similar bills, and this has proven to be anti-growth, anti-jobs and against the interests of the citizens of those states,” he said at the time, with his statement debuting roughly seven hours before AllianceBernstein’s $3.7 million incentive bill faced its final vote at Metro Council.
In the weeks that followed, more than 100 companies joined AllianceBernstein in pushing back; none of the controversial bills made it to Gov. Bill Lee’s desk.
“They’re a great example to point to and say, ‘This is what leadership looks like,’” Woolley said. “It is a new Nashville, and AllianceBernstein is a huge part of changing how corporations here see themselves. There were corporations who thought they were at the ceiling [when it comes to workplace inclusion], and now everybody is in a race to be like AB.”