Nathan Deal
Georgia Governor Nathan Deal may have felt the pressure from Hollywood and the sports leagues such as the NFL, NBA, & The Olympics. Because he made a statement today that he will veto the “Religious Liberty” Bill, which many people deemed is an anti – gay legislation.
The HB 757 would have allowed religious organizations to deny services to those who violate their “sincerely held religious belief.” The bill, entitled the Free Exercise Protection Act, received criticism from major Hollywood studios, who said it allowed for discrimination against LGBTQ people.
The Republican Governor stated he feels that freedom of speech and freedom of religion should be left to the U.S.Constitution. Deal is quoted as saying “Georgia is a welcoming state. It is full of loving, kind and generous people, and “the bill doesn’t reflect the character of our state or the character of our people.”
Disney, Netflix, The Weinstein Company threatened to boycott Georgia if the bill was signed and Viacom, Time Warner, Fox, Sony, MGM, CBS, Comcast/NBC Universal and many other studios spoke out against the bill. The National Football League said the measure threatened to affect Atlanta’s bid for the Super Bowl. LGBTQ rights groups like the Human Rights Campaign and GLAAD also decried the bill as anti-gay legislation.
There were over 248 feature films and television productions that were shot in the state of Georgia that made an impact of $6 billion. TV and film production gets 30 percent tax incentives from the state of Georgia.