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Georgia’s religious leaders on Tuesday called for a boycott of Home Depot over the company’s refusal to speak out against a new law restricting access to votes in the state.
The move by officials, representing more than 1,000 churches in Georgia, underscores how activists continue to attack businesses in Georgia to use their significant political influence to protect the right to vote. Georgia-based Coca-Cola, another boycott target, and Delta Air Lines have spoken out vigorously against the restrictions, but only after they were signed into law.
The faith leaders said in a statement that they were targeted by Home Depot after company representatives recently refused to attend a summit of corporate and church officials. Home Depot has refused to specifically oppose the Georgian law and even went out of its way to tell the Washington Post when the law was pending by the legislature that it did not oppose the measure.
“We don’t think we should let their indifference stand,” said Bishop Reginald Jackson, presiding prelate of the AME Church’s Sixth District, which includes more than 500 black churches in Georgia, during a press conference outside a Home Depot in Decatur at Tuesday.
Sara Gorman, a Home Depot spokesperson, declined to comment specifically on the call for boycotts. “We have decided that the most appropriate approach for us is to continue to underline our statement that all elections should be accessible, fair and secure and support broad voter participation, and that we should continue to work to secure our employees in Georgia and the United States. everywhere. the country has the information and resources to vote, ”she said in a statement.
Republicans plunged into the new boycott call to accuse Democrats of attempting to hurt the state. Some Republicans see an opening to use resistance to companies as a way to motivate supporters. They have become increasingly aggressive about that approach after Major League Baseball decided to move the All-Star Game out of Georgia due to concerns about the new law.
“This is how it goes: agree with every part of the left-wing agenda, or get scrapped. First they came for a ball game. Now they come for jobs in Georgia, ”Georgia governor Brian Kemp, a Republican, said in a Facebook post.
Not all voters have embraced the idea of boycotting companies in Georgia. Stacey Abrams, the Democratic voting rights leader widely expected to launch a governmental bid by 2022, has stopped endorsing the practice, telling the Associated Press that they ended up hurting “the victims of these bills.”
Senator Raphael Warnock, a Democrat, also responded to MLB’s decision to move the All-Star Game by saying, “ I hope companies, athletes and entertainers can protest this bill, not by leaving Georgia, but by come here and fight against voter oppression. up and hand in hand with the community. “
“I cannot fully support a boycott within Georgia,” Aunna Dennis, the Georgia division executive of Common Cause, a watchdog group, told the New York Times. “The boycott harms the working class. But companies should be held accountable for where they place their dollars. “