LGBT activists have launched a campaign
calling on Amazon not to locate its second headquarters in a city
without statewide LGBT protections.
Earlier this month, Amazon narrowed its
list of contenders to 20 cities.
The
“No Gay? No Way!!” campaign calls on Amazon to avoid 11 of
those cities, including Dallas, Austin, Atlanta, Pittsburgh,
Philadelphia, Nashville, Raleigh, Columbus, Miami, Northern Virginia
and Indianapolis. Several of the cities, including Philadelphia,
Pittsburgh and Columbus, have enacted such protections in the absence
of statewide protections.
“31 states fail to protect lesbian,
gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) employees people from
discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations,”
the campaign states on its website. “Surprisingly, nine of those
states are home to 11 of the 20 finalist cities vying for Amazon’s
second headquarters.”
“It is shocking that Amazon would
consider locating HQ2 with its over 50,000 employees in a state that
doesn’t protect LGBT people or their families. In these nine
states, it is legal to fire someone, deny them housing, or refuse
them service just because of who they are or who they love.”
LGBT activist Conor Gaughan launched
the campaign, with the support of other organizers, including Kate
Kendall of the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR).