It may come as a shock to many in our community, but the holiday we observe over this long weekend wasn’t created to celebrate the end of summer with a trip to the beach for one last three-day romp in the sun. While the holiday does mark the change of the season, it’s not called “End of Summer Day” or “Let’s Go to the Beach Weekend” — it’s called Labor Day.

After a year of further progress in our fight for full equality, it is important to remember the critical role the labor movement has played in that progress and how important its partnership has been to LGBT equality.

Labor stands with those who need lifting up to find a better station in life. The continued strength and vibrancy of the labor movement is just as important to our goal of full equality today as it was when the first collective bargaining agreement was signed that protected workers from sexual orientation discrimination.

It’s great that corporations are coming out to support LGBT equality in droves, but their newfound support has more to do with increased profit margins than standing up for an ideal. Labor was with us before it was cool and hip to be pro-LGBT – and now that our political and social stars are on the rise, we need to remember that labor’s fight is our fight.

Now that the LGBT movement has all this newfound cachet in corporate America, why isn’t more of our community pressing labor’s cause in solidarity with their own? Are we that kind of friend?