Bill Stewart, 45, has left a million-dollar apartment and a six-figure job in Chicago for an efficiency apartment and an unpaid volunteer job in San Francisco. Stewart, former Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Kmart, resigned from his job with Kmart’s parent company, Sears Holding, on 17 June, and his last day was Monday, 30 June.
Stewart was named to the board of directors of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) in February of this year. While attending a GLAAD board meeting in Los Angeles last month, he resolved to be more involved in the fight for marriage equality. Within a few days, he decided that meant quitting his job and moving back to his native California to help. He’ll be working with the Equality for All campaign, a coalition of groups including GLAAD, Human Rights Campaign, Equality California, and the ACLU.
“I think it’s incredibly important for the equal rights movement for gays and lesbians that California send a message to the rest of the country that we ought to be allowed to marry,” Stewart says.
I never thought I’d be hailing a marketing executive as a hero; just goes to show, you never can tell. Thanks for stepping up, Bill.
Read more:
Kmart marketing officer to depart Sears (Chicago Tribune)
Kmart exec resigns to join California marriage fight (Washington Blade)
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