38 Hollywood A-Listers Promise To Boycott Georgia Over Anti-Gay “Religious Liberty” Law

"We will plan to take our business elsewhere if any legislation sanctioning discrimination is signed into state law."
From: NewNowNext

At least 38 famous Hollywood big wigs have come forward to condemn the anti-gay “religious liberty” bill currently sitting on Georgia Governor Nathan Deal’s desk.

Disney, Marvel, the NFL, HBO, Warner Bros., Viacom and Time Warner were among the first major corporations to come out against House Bill 757, which would effectively legalize discrimination in the state against people based on their sexual orientation, by threatening to pull their operations (and billions of corporate dollars) out of Georgia if it passes.

Yesterday, a number of A-list celebrities including Anne Hathaway, Julianne Moore, Ryan Murphy, Matt Bomer, Greg Berlanti, Dustin Lance Black and Seth MacFarlane joined the effort by similarly promising to bring their business elsewhere if Deal follows through in signing the homophobic legislation into law.

In an open letter published by the HRC, the list of 38 celebrities urge Deal to keep this “bad situation” from becoming worse:

Dear Governor Deal,

As leaders in the entertainment industry, we have deep concerns about H.B. 757, which would sanction discrimination against LGBT people and others in Georgia.

As you know, Atlanta is often referred to as the Hollywood of the South. During the last fiscal year, at least 248 films and television productions were shot in Georgia, adding at least $1.7 billion in direct spending to the state’s economy. Additionally, the entertainment industry helped to bring more than 100 businesses to Georgia through relocation or expansion in the past fiscal year. Only two states — California and New York — have a larger entertainment industry footprint and both have statewide non-discrimination protections on the books. Unfortunately, Georgia not only lacks such protections, but could soon move from a bad situation to worse with H.B. 757.

We pride ourselves on running inclusive companies, and while we have enjoyed a positive partnership on productions in Georgia, we will plan to take our business elsewhere if any legislation sanctioning discrimination is signed into state law.

We urge you to veto H.B. 757 and send a strong message that Georgia will not tolerate discrimination against citizens, employees and visitors to the state.

Thank you in advance for your consideration of this urgent issue.

A copy of the letter in its entirety, including 38 signatures, can be found here.

“We applaud the dozens of leaders from the entertainment industry who are taking a stand today against discrimination, intolerance, and bigotry,” HRC President Chad Griffin said in a statement.

“The entertainment industry has a huge economic footprint in Georgia, and the choice for Governor Deal could not be any clearer: he must veto this outrageous legislation before it inflicts tremendous damage on the state. This outrageous and discriminatory legislation is an affront to the values we all share.”