Post by Logan on Apr 25, 2016 1:20:54 GMT -6
Steve Eisenstadt of Raleigh goes to a lot of concerts, probably scores of them per year. But his 2016 total might be down from years past, thanks to artists boycotting North Carolina over House Bill 2.
He had tickets for both Bruce Springsteen and Pearl Jam, who canceled North Carolina shows this month over the controversial new law. And while Eisenstadt opposes HB2 and sympathizes with the artists, being on the business end of a boycott is wearing thin.
“It’s been excruciating to live in a place where some of my favorite artists will not play,” he said. “Who knows what will happen? It’s an environment where anyone might cancel. I would argue that it’s incumbent on any major artist with a North Carolina show between now and November to state their intentions now, one way or the other.”
HB2, the “Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act,” was passed and signed into law March 23. Along with the highly charged bathroom clause about which public facilities transgender people can use, it also invalidated local ordinances protecting gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people from discrimination.
Read more: www.journalnow.com/news/state_region/decision-on-whether-to-boycott-n-c-over-hb-is/article_1eb5610d-3890-50e5-9534-9dc0dc115129.html
He had tickets for both Bruce Springsteen and Pearl Jam, who canceled North Carolina shows this month over the controversial new law. And while Eisenstadt opposes HB2 and sympathizes with the artists, being on the business end of a boycott is wearing thin.
“It’s been excruciating to live in a place where some of my favorite artists will not play,” he said. “Who knows what will happen? It’s an environment where anyone might cancel. I would argue that it’s incumbent on any major artist with a North Carolina show between now and November to state their intentions now, one way or the other.”
HB2, the “Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act,” was passed and signed into law March 23. Along with the highly charged bathroom clause about which public facilities transgender people can use, it also invalidated local ordinances protecting gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people from discrimination.
Read more: www.journalnow.com/news/state_region/decision-on-whether-to-boycott-n-c-over-hb-is/article_1eb5610d-3890-50e5-9534-9dc0dc115129.html