Openly gay U.S. gymnast Josh Dixon is slated to compete in Indianapolis later this summer at the P&G Gymnastics Championships. Outsports caught up with Dixon and asked him about the new anti-LGBT law in Indiana and how that might affect him as an out gay competitor:
“Personally, I can only speak in a positive light when it comes to USA Gymnastics and creating an open and inclusive space for everybody. It will be interesting to see what comes of this given that their NGB headquarters is in Indy as well as our premiere competition this summer. From the lens of going there as a top-level gymnast for a high-stakes competition, the added stress of establishments being able to discriminate against me because of who I am – well it disgusts me. …
Hopefully USA Gymnastics will do the right thing and move the P&G Championships to a state that has not legalized discrimination against anyone based on their race, gender, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity.
When Indiana’s Republican Gov. Mike Pence signed a bill into law allowing the state’s businesses to refuse to serve same-sex couples on religious grounds, he knew the move was a controversial one.
Even so, he probably didn’t anticipate the level of vitriol that it would spark, much of it directed at him personally. …
NPR – Indiana’s ‘Religious Freedom’ Bill Sparks Firestorm Of Controversy
related – 19 states that have ‘religious freedom’ laws like Indiana’s that no one is boycotting.
One by one these States will eventually rescind those laws. Which will be the very last do you think?
