Public pressure against the Georgia legislature’s heinous religious liberty bill from this week is mounting. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the NFL is reconsidering withdrawing Atlanta from consideration for future Super Bowls:
If Georgia chooses to turn the “religious liberty” bill into law, be prepared: Atlanta may not get a Super Bowl.
That was the suggestion from the NFL on Friday when the league released a statement in response to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s question about whether the league had any position on Georgia House Bill 757.
The statement from league spokesman Brian McCarthy reads, “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.”
The NFL joins many other national companies, including Delta, Coca-Cola, Salesforce and the film/tv industry, expressing major dissatisfaction with this bill.
In the short term, this is all about pressuring Gov. Nathan Deal at this point. He’s got until May 3rd to decide whether or not to veto this bill. But even if he does, there’s a longer-term concern: a possibility that the Georgia legislature may override his veto.
How can you help? By doing any (or even all) of the following:
(1) If you’re outside of GA, you can pressure companies who do business in the state to compel the Governor to veto the bill. (Or you can thank those companies who’ve expressed opposition to the bill on twitter, Facebook, or email.) Gov. Deal is very concerned about Georgia’s business climate, so he’ll be receptive to corporate pressure. You can learn more about the corporate pushback (and which companies have been standing against discrimination) here: Georgia Prospers
(2) If you’re in GA, or know someone who is, it’s critical to call Governor Deal now and urge him to veto this bill (HB757). The number is 404-656-1776.
(3) We need to demand the media report on this story, at least as much as they did on Indiana. This bill in Georgia is perhaps even worse than the Indiana one in terms of giving individuals the ability to deny services to anyone whose marriage practices they disagree with.
(4) Sign petitions and get involved with advocacy campaigns.
Georgia Unites Against Discrimination has a good organization going:
https://www.facebook.com/GeorgiaUnites
http://www.georgiaunites.org/
And here’s a petition put together by Better Georgia. Probably best for GA residents to sign: http://act.bettergeorgia.org/sign/newreligiousfreedombill/
(5) Support voter registration in Georgia. The state is nearly purple, and we can get it there soon with some time and money. More info here: New Georgia Project