CEDIA has issued an official statement in reaction to Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which was signed into law on March 26, 2015 by that state’s governor Mike Pence. The law has generated much backlash, both locally and nationally.
In its statement, Indianapolis-based CEDIA said, “We would like to take the opportunity to say CEDIA is sincerely committed to providing an inclusive environment for all of our encounters with members, customers, attendees, and industry professionals through all of our events and offerings both within the state of Indiana and beyond.
“The association does not support discrimination of any kind and will take care going forward to ensure our members and customers are not negatively impacted by Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act.”
According to the Indianapolis Star, about a dozen Indiana cities, including Indianapolis, have local nondiscrimination laws that specifically protect gays and lesbians in employment, housing, education and public accommodation, which include business transactions. But in much of Indiana there is no such protection. The concern among opponents of the new law is that it could embolden people to challenge those local laws.
Pence has stated that law is intended to protect people who feel that it’s against their religious beliefs to provide services to same-sex couples.
The law goes into effect on July 1.
