This past weekend, Bruce Springsteen cancelled his concert is Greensboro, NC. Why? The same reason several other companies are refusing to work in North Carolina: HB2, the Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act. On April 8th, two days before the concert, Springsteen publicized a post on his website and on Facebook, explaining why he was canceling his show. He explained, "I feel that this is a time for me and the band to show solidarity for those freedom fighters," AKA the LGBTQ community, who were directly effected by this bill. Because of the media, Springsteen was able to share his opinion with his fans and express his reasoning for canceling the show. I would argue that without the power of the media, canceling his show would not have had as much of an impact because it wouldn't have reached such a large audience. Without being able to post on Facebook, the only people that would know about the cancelation would be those who were supposed to go to the concert. By posting on social media, Springsteen's message was very strong and he got his point across.
Find his statement here: http://brucespringsteen.net/
It is great to hear that people are fighting back! This reminds me of what Marlon Brando did at the Oscars. People are boycotting and saying no to unjust treatment of people based on things like sexuality and ethnicity.
ReplyDeleteI applaud Mr. Springsteen for this. I think that it will take a lot to overturn HB2, but this is hopefully a step towards that. I also think that Springsteen shows support of the transcommunity, which is very important!
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