GLAAD responds to Arizona governor’s veto of anti-LGBT bill

NEW YORK, NY – GLAAD, the nation's lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) media advocacy organization, today responded to Arizona Governor Jan Brewer's veto of Senate Bill 1062, which would have given license to Arizona businesses to blatantly discriminate against LGBT people.

"Discrimination is not an American value, plain and simple," said GLAAD CEO and President Sarah Kate Ellis. "Governor Brewer today demonstrated that basic respect for LGBT people extends across party lines, and anti-LGBT bias isn't just bad politics, it's bad for business. As other states consider similar laws that aim only to make LGBT people's lives more difficult, legislators would do well to remember that anti-LGBT laws just won't be tolerated."

More than 80 companies urged Gov. Brewer to veto SB 1062. The full list is viewable here: /sites/default/files/Gov_Brewer_Veto_Letter.w_Signatures.pdf

Additional companies that spoke out against the bill included Apple, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, GoDaddy Group, Intel, JPMorgan Chase, Marriott, Southwest Airlines, and Yelp.

Sports organizations including Major League Baseball (MLB) and the National Football League (NFL) also expressed concern about the bill. Arizona is slated to host the Super Bowl in 2015.

Others who have spoken out against the bill include U.S. Senators from Arizona John McCain and Jeff Flake. On Tuesday, Senator McCain told CNN's Chris Cuomo that "This [bill] is going to hurt the state of Arizona's economy and, frankly, our image, so I hope that the Governor of Arizona will veto this and we will move on."

Faith leaders also spoke out strongly against the bill, including the Rev. Debra W. Haffner, President of the Religious Institute; the Rev. Nancy Wilson, Moderator of the Metropolitan Community Churches; and Mary E. Hunt, Ph.D. of the Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual.