Friday, April 8th, Bruce Springsteen spoke out about the bathroom law that has recently been passed in North Carolina. The Boss decided to cancel his upcoming show (it was that Saturday night) in Greensboro, North Carolina because of this. The show was part of Bruce and the E street band’s new River tour.
“It is the strongest means I have for raising my voice in opposition to those who continue to push us backwards instead of forwards.”, Springsteen said.
This new law is titled the Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act. It was passed about a month ago and is causing a lot of uproar from business owners, major celebrities, and people from all over the map. Governor Pat McCrory believed that the implementation of this law would help better and strengthen people’s privacy when using restroom facilities….. as you can see, not everyone agrees with him on this one.
The Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act prohibits transgender people from using bathrooms that don’t match the gender they were depicted as when they were born. Horrible, right?! As if that weren’t bad enough, the act also conflicts with the civil rights protections that gay and transgender people have.
Bruce’s cancellation can cost the coliseum he was scheduled to perform at up to 100,000 dollars…that’s a lot of money people! The cancellation announcement was posted on http://brucespringsteen.net by the man himself:
“As you, my fans, know I’m scheduled to play in Greensboro, North Carolina this Sunday. As we also know, North Carolina has just passed HB2, which the media are referring to as the “bathroom” law. HB2 — known officially as the Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act — dictates which bathrooms transgender people are permitted to use. Just as important, the law also attacks the rights of LGBT citizens to sue when their human rights are violated in the workplace. No other group of North Carolinians faces such a burden. To my mind, it’s an attempt by people who cannot stand the progress our country has made in recognizing the human rights of all of our citizens to overturn that progress. Right now, there are many groups, businesses, and individuals in North Carolina working to oppose and overcome these negative developments. Taking all of this into account, I feel that this is a time for me and the band to show solidarity for those freedom fighters. As a result, and with deepest apologies to our dedicated fans in Greensboro, we have canceled our show scheduled for Sunday, April 10th. Some things are more important than a rock show and this fight against prejudice and bigotry — which is happening as I write — is one of them. It is the strongest means I have for raising my voice in opposition to those who continue to push us backwards instead of forwards.”
Fan’s reactions to Bruce’s action are very mixed. Some feel that the cancellation is commendable and noteworthy while others feel that Bruce is being a “coward” for announcing this to his fans with such short notice. Many of the band members claimed that they were “proud to be part of the E Street Band” on their social media outlets.
Bandmembers, Stevie Van Zandt, and Nils Lofgren fought back to fan’s angry comments on their Twitter pages:
The lawmakers in North Carolina are calling Bruce a “bully” and disagree with his actions. All of the tickets bought for the Greensboro show will be refunded at the point of purchase.