Disney among corporations opposing Georgia’s anti-gay legislation
A so-called religious “liberty bill” titled House Bill 757 backed by Republicans was passed through the Georgian House of Representatives Wednesday afternoon, on March 16, 2016. The Legislation was passed through the Senate hours later, and is currently awaiting to be signed by Georgia Governor Nathan Deal. Bill 757 has caused quite a stir among small business owners, Georgia’s film industry, tourism, as well as sports, eliciting strong opposition from groups like the NFL and Disney.
The bill, which underwent months of debate and revisions, permits faith-based organizations to deny social, educational, and charitable services based on a “sincerely held religious belief” relating to marriage. The bill, as written, will allegedly: “Provide a claim or a defence to persons whose religious exercise is substantially burdened by government.” Many critics see the bill as treating the LGBTQ+ community as second-class citizens and that the government of Georgia, in doing so, are willing to damage the reputation and economy of Georgia. The open ended language of the bill defines faith-based organizations as churches, religious schools, and mission groups, but the broad language of the bill has critics worried this could cover businesses, hospitals, adoption centers, and homeless shelters as well.
[pullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]…treating the LGBTQ+ community as second-class citizens…[/pullquote]
Georgia is among other states in the the U.S. that have passed or are attempting to pass anti-gay legislation which has caused opposition from a corporate level. In 2014, a similar situation was seen by Arizona’s legislators who made an attempt at a religious restoration bill, but intense pressure stopped the bill. In 2015, Indiana Governor Mike Pence passed a revised bill that sought to stop businesses from discriminating against any person based on their sexual orientation. North Carolina was the first to pass a series of so-called bathroom bills that requires students in state schools to use the bathroom that corresponds with the gender recorded on their birth certificates. The NBA were among big corporate names that denied the bill, and they threatened Charlotte’s right to host the 2017 All-Star game.
If Georgia Governor Deal passes Bill 757, Georgia will lose billions of dollars in revenue as film production companies such as Marvel, CBS, Time Warner, Lionsgate, Starz, 21st Century Fox, Netflix, and Viacom all strongly oppose the legislation. Many of the statements made by these companies scathingly criticize the legislation and see the bill as infringing on the rights on members of LGBTQ+ community.
The Weinstein Company threatened to move their new film stating,“The Weinstein Co. will not stand behind sanctioning the discrimination of LGBTQ+ people or any American.”
Disney said they “will plan to take their business elsewhere should any legislation allowing discriminatory practices be signed into state law,” and Netflix had “planned on filming two series there in the coming months, but should any legislation allowing discriminatory practice be signed into state law, we will move our productions elsewhere.” 21st Century Fox, used its statement to “urge the Governor of Georgia to veto the deplorable and regressive legislation (House Bill 757) that has been sent to him.” Time Warner announced Thursday that its members “strongly oppose the discriminatory language and intent of Georgia’s pending religious liberty bill, which clearly violates the values and principles of inclusion and the ability of all people to live and work free from discrimination.”
The NFL and Apple have joined 448 other businesses that oppose this bill. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a statement: “NFL policies emphasize tolerance and inclusiveness, and prohibit discrimination based on age, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, or any other improper standard. Whether the laws and regulations of a state and local community are consistent with these policies would be one of many factors NFL owners may use to evaluate potential Super Bowl host sites.” This could mean Atlanta would not be in the running for hosting the 2017 Super Bowl.