So let me make mine just as clear. If your Governor Jan Brewer signs this repugnant bill into law, make no mistake. We will not come. We will not spend. And we will urge everyone we know–from large corporations to small families on vacation–to boycott.
Isn’t that what Arizona Republicans want? To stop gay people and people who are ok with gay people from coming to their state?
If a boycott takes place it will be corporations and such boycotting. Not simply losing a couple of vacation rentals from gay people. Most corporations have strict anti-discrimination guidelines; often better than state laws.
As a gay person, having a meeting in a state that is hostile to gay people creates a hostile work environment.
People might be willing to drive across town to buy Chik-Fil-A, but trekking to Arizona to offset 18 billion dollars at stake? That’s a little more to ask.
Bring it on, I say: go ahead and sign it, Gov. Brewer. The GOP is so thoroughly on the wrong side of history, yet somehow people keep voting for them. Enacting this law is a necessary part of its demise, and the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few.
And, at this point, isn’t the damage done, as far as relations with Arizona are concerned? Even if Brewer vetoes it, a majority of both houses approved it. The rest is just civics.
Edited for clarity.
I think an important point here is that it isn’t just gay folks who are going to avoid that state like the plague. I am a straight dude, but roughly half of my friends are queer of one flavor or another. That makes it my business as well. On top of that, I influence family, friends, and business. I can safely say that I will also boycott any state that has such an abomination of a law enforced. That isn’t an empty or idle threat either. The southwest was on my vacation to-do list, and there is a conference there held annually that I’ll skip. I know my person contribution won’t crash the state, but that is probably a couple thousand dollars right there to toss into the bin for this year alone.
Hear, hear!
So many people who are not LGBT are still entwined with their community, and fully support their efforts to have equal treatment under the law.
Don’t forget, Kansas is trying to do the same thing. Hit 'em where it hurts, people (after all, they ARE trying to hurt YOU).
Another straight dude here. I’ve got a couple of gay friends, but honestly not that many (that I know of). But who gives a rat’s ass? This isn’t about whether or not I’m personally affected in any way shape or form. This is about a basic injustice being perpetrated on other humans. This isn’t meant as a criticism to Rindan, but just a reminder that this is well beyond what happens to any of us individually.
Also, I live in the southwest, and regularly travel to Az. There are unfortunately going to be a few unavoidable trips that will have to be made (relatives live there etc…), but travel and expenditures will be severely curtailed.
There will be a lot of “Hey, why don’t you come visit us instead?” going on as well as “we could meet in a wholly different state”.
It’s fairly ridiculous that this sort of pandering to fear and hate is taking place in 2014.
The Kansas Senate stopped the religious freedom bill.
yep. ive been planning a tour of the west, and i can totally drive around Arizona, and stay elsewhere. Bummer, because Tucson is one of my favorite getaways.
Well, you know, there are Zonies and then there are yuppies who only pretend to live here. We who actually live here in Arizona are getting awfully tired of entertainment types trying to dictate our politics. We are awfully tired of putting up with jaded businessmen who think it’s cute to get water sprayed in their face at a restaurant. If they want heat and humidity together, they ought to go to Florida where that sort of thing is natural. Mr. Takei and his ilk are likewise invited to go someplace else and don’t come back. We did very well here in the desert without their money and we will be quite content to go on doing without it.
Shit. It’s a hell of a lot more than just people in entertainment who think your politics stink.
So we have one vote for homophobia, neat, anyone else?
Having grown up in Tucson this whole thing is infuriating to me for a lot of reasons. In case you aren’t familiar with Arizona politics, Arizona isn’t politically homogenous and this sort of bigoted attitude isn’t shared by people in places like Tucson, Flagstaff, and many of the smaller towns that make up the Phoenix metropolitan area. That “We reserve the right to refuse service to Arizona legislators” sign that’s been making the rounds on the internet? That’s from Rocco’s Pizzeria on Broadway and Country Club in the middle of Tucson. It’s not an unpopular sign there. And if the law goes through, I can pretty much guarantee that any business in Tucson that exercises their so-called “right” to discriminate will be met with the sort of backlash they deserve.
If you happen to live in Arizona, there are a number of marches and other demonstrations against the bill that are going to happen in the next few days. I encourage you to do your part against this bill!
Who cares if it passes? There oughta be a boycott just for proposing such a law.
Add to this the Latino boycott of Arizona for that other legislative turd a few years back (I’ve been to Arizona a few times in the past, now I actively avoid it), and holy shit, these xenophobes want to lose income, and the more income they lose, the angrier they become, and the angrier they become, the more income they lose… when does the spiral stop, then?
Oh, gee… How did I know that it was Republicans behind this without even checking?
This is one of many reasons why it’s not a good idea to not vote (or throw away votes) and usher in a bunch of Republicans.
Yes, yes… Democrats suck and I want to reform the party and eventually have a valid, progressive third party in power. But fer the love of Gawd, let’s keep these Republicans the hell out of office in the meantime, please?
Personally I’d like to cut off their water supply from our Colorado River up here. They always yap about self-sufficiency, so I’d like to put them to the test. Enjoy your desert living, assholes.
Fuck Arizona if that state can’t get these Republican and libertarian pieces of shit out of office. I lived there and really liked a lot of the people, but this is out of control and there should be far more outrage and activism there to destroy these assholes.
Tucson isn’t the part of the state supporting this bill. And I just checked LegiScan.com and (unsurprisingly) all the representatives from Tucson voted against SB1062.
And I bet gay folks are getting awfully tired of bigots trying to enact Jim Crow laws for gay folks. Arizona is, for better or for worse, a part of the US. That means you when you act like a bigoted piece of shit it makes the rest of us look bad. More than that, while you might be content to curb stomp minorities into the ground and defend it as “our politics”, I’m not.
If it hadn’t been for brave folks in the South and Northern allies physically forcing the South to change their ways, we might still have “separate but equal”. I’m sorry if you feels are hurt when you try and re-enact Jim Crow laws a god damn half century after those abominations were killed and the rest of the nation starts beating on you, but tough shit. Stop brutalizing people and the rest of the nation can merrily go back to ignoring you.
