Boston has canceled three upcoming
shows in North Carolina to protest a state law it criticized as
discriminatory.
Tom Scholz, the group's
singer-songwriter, announced the cancellation of three shows on
Facebook.
“While the enjoyment of our fans is
our central concern, and we have been looking forward to celebrating
forty years of history performing for our listeners in North Carolina
with spectacular live shows this spring, human rights are more
important,” Scholz
wrote. “It is with deep regret, that I must announce the
cancellation of our upcoming shows on May 4, 5 & 6 in Charlotte,
Greensboro, and Raleigh in order to raise awareness, and protest in
the strongest terms, the recent passage of HB2, the so called “North
Carolina bathroom law.”
North Carolina's law, House Bill 2,
prohibits cities from approving LGBT protections and bars students
attending public institutions from using the bathroom that does not
conform to their gender at birth.
“HB2 has the appearance of an
oppressive discriminatory law against a small minority, who already
have to deal with a narrow-minded world regarding issues beyond their
control which they did nothing to bring upon themselves. Other
aspects of the new law arguably encourage bigotry. With thousands of
fans in attendance at our shows, it is likely that some members of
our audience and/or their loved ones are affected on a daily basis by
this ugly expression of intolerance,” he added.
Boston joins a growing list of artists
protesting House Bill 2 and calling for its repeal, including Bruce
Springsteen, Ani
DiFranco, Duran
Duran, Ringo
Starr and Cirque
du Soleil.