Indiana's new anti-gay law prompts calls for boycott on Twitter
Businesses and entertainers are vowing to pull events out of Indiana after the governor signed a bill into law that gives business owners the right to refuse to serve gay and lesbian customers.
On Thursday, Gov. Mike Pence signed the state's Religious Freedom Restoration Act in a private, closed-door ceremony.
Sad this new Indiana law can happen in America today. We shouldn't discriminate against ppl bc of who they love <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LGBT?src=hash">#LGBT</a> <a href="http://t.co/mDhpS18oEH">http://t.co/mDhpS18oEH</a>
—@HillaryClintonHillary Clinton was among the high profile critics of the bill, which opponents argue will allow people to use their religious beliefs as a defence if they are sued for denying service to customers who are gay.
I signed SEA 101 today to ensure religious liberty is fully protected under IN law <a href="http://t.co/vCOASZBZnH">http://t.co/vCOASZBZnH</a> <a href="http://t.co/CMFJh6aLDx">pic.twitter.com/CMFJh6aLDx</a>
—@GovPenceINGov. Pence dismissed criticism of the bill as misunderstanding of what the legislation does.
"This bill is not about discrimination, and if I thought it legalized discrimination in any way in Indiana, I would have vetoed it," Pence said in his statement Thursday.
The CEO of the cloud computing company Salesforce responded to the signing of the bill by cancelling all events in the state.
Today we are canceling all programs that require our customers/employees to travel to Indiana to face discrimination. <a href="http://t.co/SvTwyCHxvE">http://t.co/SvTwyCHxvE</a>
—@BenioffTony Award-winning actor Audra McDonald put a few rhetorical questions to Gov. Pence on Twitter Thursday evening.
.<a href="https://twitter.com/GovPenceIN">@GovPenceIN</a> Some in my band are gay & we have 2 gigs in your state next month. Should we call ahead to make sure the hotel accepts us all?
—@AudraEqualityMc.<a href="https://twitter.com/GovPenceIN">@GovPenceIN</a> or could you maybe send us a list of where its okay for us to go? Might the law apply to me?(I'm black).
—@AudraEqualityMc.<a href="https://twitter.com/GovPenceIN">@GovPenceIN</a> or maybe I should fire my gay band members just to be on the safe side.
—@AudraEqualityMc.<a href="https://twitter.com/GovPenceIN">@GovPenceIN</a> Or MAYBE...we need to stick to singing in states that don't legislate hate?
—@AudraEqualityMcOther celebrities, including actor Ashton Kutcher and gay-rights campaigner George Takei, tweeted their reactions, as well.
Indiana are you also going to allow Christian establishments to ban Jews from coming in? Or Vice Versa? Religious freedom??? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OUTRAGE?src=hash">#OUTRAGE</a>
—@apluskSHAMEFUL & DISGUSTING NEWS - Indiana Governor Signs Anti-Gay 'Religious Freedom' Bill <a href="http://t.co/Pe76VQav9s">http://t.co/Pe76VQav9s</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/HuffPostPol">@HuffPostPol</a>
—@HarveyFiersteinOutraged over Indiana Freedom to Discriminate law, signed today. LGBTs aren't 2nd class citizens. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BoycottIndiana?src=hash">#BoycottIndiana</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Pence?src=hash">#Pence</a>
—@GeorgeTakeiIndiana .. A law that allows businesses to reject someone because they're gay ???? That's barbaric and inhumane. I stand against it. ✊
—@MCHammerWith the Final Four of the NCAA basketball tournament taking place in Indianapolis next week, the president of the college sports association issued a statement saying the NCAA is "deeply committed to providing an inclusive environment for all our events" and will "closely examine the implications of this bill."
On Monday, after the state legislature passed the bill, the NBA's first openly gay player, Jason Collins, wondered if he would be welcome at the event.
.<a href="https://twitter.com/GovPenceIN">@GovPenceIN</a>, is it going to be legal for someone to discriminate against me & others when we come to the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FinalFour?src=hash">#FinalFour</a>? <a href="http://t.co/uBlKbIf8YK">http://t.co/uBlKbIf8YK</a>
—@jasoncollins98