Thursday, April 07, 2016
IATSE Opposes Georgia Religious Liberty Bill
Stage Directions: IATSE released a statement opposing the Georgia religious libery bill and any efforts to override Gov. Nathan Deal's veto of this bill. Part of the statement reads: “Equal rights are the cornerstone of the labor movement. As a union that represents people working in the entertainment industry and strives for equality and diversity, the IATSE strongly stands against any legislation that would hurt Georgia’s economy and discriminate against the LGBTQ community.”
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2 comments:
Good for you, IATSE, taking a stand for human rights, and defending LGBTQ workers across the state of Georgia. Good for you. As pundits across the nation decry the power of unions and worker's rights organizations, I am reminded of the power that such organizations, as unaffiliated as said organizations may be from the issue at hand, may have on the outcome of a situation like that currently unfolding in Georgia. Never mind the obvious bias and political slime coating the entire deal, or the fact that what is being branded as "religious freedom" is in fact a shoddily disguised excuse for followers of the Christian tradition, often fundamentalist biblical literalists (I'm related to a shit-ton of them, so I can say whatever the hell I want to say about them, you can do the same once you've endured 18 Thanksgivings complete with 5-minute grace before the meal and extremely uncomfortable conversation about Sharon's daughter, who is marrying a Jew, lord forgive her.) to be hateful and scared, and project their hate and fear on the world around them. To IATSE's response, I have nothing but praise, indeed, I think it may be time for me to go public with my own opinion.
Though IATSE may not be a household name, I hope the Georgian state legislature realizes the power those five capitalized letters hold. Right now, IATSE isn’t actually threatening to do anything, they are simply stating that they disagree with the legislation. But it Georgia doesn’t work to get on IATSE’s good side, things could be bad. IATSE has the power to effectively leave the film and theatre industry in Georgia in ruins. Imagine if every stagehand, artist, electrician, sound engineer, just disappeared from the state. All production would stop, one of the largest industries in Georgia wouldn’t have a leg to stand on. The possible threat of an IATSE freeze, in addition to the numerous other threats by the film industry, the music industry, and large corporations, really leaves Georgia in a tricky situation. It’s really empowering to see so many different companies and organizations stand in solidarity with LGBT+ community. I hope this forces Georgian legislature to right their wrong and stand on the right side of history.
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