After 63 House Reps, 40 Senators, and Mike Pence gave the
go-ahead on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the nation exploded. Concerned
about the bill’s potential to be a thinly-veiled rationalization of discrimination
against LGBTAQ+ folks, hundreds of groups have responded with outrage.
Local and national celebrities, businesses, religious
groups, politicians, and conventions have gone to great lengths to express
their opposition to the measure. I mean, when Reggie Miller, Miley Cyrus, and Tim Cook
all tweet about the same issue in the same day, you know something’s up.
Big names like Salesforce, Angie’s List, the entire city government
of San Francisco, the NCAA, Gen Con, and Yelp have all responded with threats or
actions to reduce or eliminate their business dealings in Indiana. To these
noble efforts to #BoycottIndiana, I have one word:
Don’t.
I am a proud Hoosier. I am queer. And I’m one of the thousands
of LGBTAQ+ kids and adults across the state that are fighting for a place in this
beautiful state. We’re here and we’re queer and when you boycott Indiana, you
boycott us.
So stay. Stay and fight with us. Stay and offer a young
lesbian a summer job in a safe space. Stay and donate to our queer candidates,
lobbyists, and organizations. Stay and invest in housing that’s safe for
transfolks. Stay and support our arts, our writings, our families, and our
local communities.
Stay because too many people have told us again and again
that we’re not wanted here. Stay because
I’m not ready to give up on the place I call home.
Don’t boycott Indiana. Invest.
