I lost my corporate job while I was in the Hospital in 1995 being treated for AIDS. My Company was in a process of down-sizing, however I was informed that they were going to keep me.

If I trusted someone and I would say to them, "I'm tired of living in the Bay Area. I want to move to warmer weather." Then my director would hear about it and the next time I saw him he'd say, "We'll

I'm from Iraq in addition to being Arab. So that's the icing on the cake these days. Everybody wants to know my thoughts. Everyone wants to ask, "Aren't you happy Saddam was captured? Aren't you happy democracy has been instilled?" I know for me in the workplace, stuff comes up.

Growing up in the South, I learned how to be a chameleon. I almost went too far the other way, always fitting in. Religion wasn't an issue for me in the workplace, because my family comes from a Christian background.

There was a very strong fundamentalist Christian culture at the office. They had unofficial policies that were implemented by the executive who was the head of marketing and sales. He would call people up and say, in no uncertain terms, "It is unacceptable for you to live with your boyfriend or girlfriend.

My friend, who knows I am a lesbian, becomes my boss. The woman who had been my executive assistant was also a closeted lesbian, very closeted, and she started to hate me because she feared I would tell my friend.