Indiana

California Mayor Bans City Travel to Indiana

San Francisco Mayor Edwin Lee's decision comes after Indiana Gov. Mike Pence signed a controversial religious objections bill

The mayor of San Francisco banned all publicly funded travel to the state of Indiana Thursday following Indiana Gov. Mike Pence's decision to sign a religious objections bill.

"We stand united as San Franciscans to condemn Indiana's new discriminatory law," Mayor Edwin Lee said in a statement, according to Politico. "San Francisco taxpayers will not subsidize legally sanctioned discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people by the State of Indiana."

Gov. Pence defended the state bill that prohibits state and local laws that "substantially burden" the ability of people, including businesses, to follow their religious beliefs. Critics of the bill say it allows discrimination because it provides legal cover to businesses that don't want to serve gays and lesbians.

The San Francisco mayor is not the only one who publicly condemned the bill. The Washington-based Human Rights Campaign said the bill sends "a dangerous and discriminatory message." Founder and CEO of Salesforce.com Marc Benioff also announced on Twitter that he was canceling all programs that require customers or employees to travel to Indiana.

Others have stood by Gov. Pence and his decision to sign the bill, including the president and CEO of Indiana Right to Life, Mike Fichter. Some conservative groups also say the bill protects businesses from providing such services as catering same-sex marriages if their religious beliefs do not support it.

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