Silicon Valley's Attack on Anti-Gay Laws Is a Watershed Moment for Tech Activism

Indiana's new "religious freedom" law has ignited a national firestorm of protest—and the tech industry is leading the fight.

The new law, which critics say opens the door to discrimination against lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender people, has prompted many leading tech companies to engage in corporate activism on social issues with a newly emboldened intensity, according to LGBT advocates.

"The tech industry's opposition to this bill is unprecedented," said Fred Sainz, vice president at Human Rights Campaign, a leading LGBT advocacy group. "Never before have so many tech firms spoken out so loudly against such discriminatory actions."

Gov. Mike Pence of Indiana says his state's law is designed to provide legal protection against government action that "substantially" burdens religious freedom. But critics call the measure a bald-faced attempt to legitimize discrimination by allowing businesses to refuse service to LGBT people on "religious" grounds.

The fierce backlash against Indiana's new law underscores how national attitudes are rapidly changing on the issue of gay rights, and highlights how important LGBT equality has become for some of the country's most influential tech companies.

In recent days, top executives at Apple, Salesforce, Yelp, EMC, and many other tech firms have voiced their strong opposition to Indiana's new law, and others like it that are proliferating around the country. It's a matter of business, they say, but also human rights and equality.

Some two dozen states have passed or are considering passing some version of "religious freedom" laws, which the bills' advocates say are designed to protect religious liberty from "government overreach."

Responding to the public backlash Tuesday, Pence said he would push Indiana lawmakers to amend the law to make clear that discrimination against gays and lesbians is illegal, but it's unclear if such a measure will succeed. Hours later, lawmakers in Arkansas passed a similar "religious freedom" bill.

Apple's CEO Tim Cook, who is openly gay, wrote a sharply worded op-ed in The Washington Post on Monday, in which he denounced Indiana's law as "very dangerous."

"These bills rationalize injustice by pretending to defend something many of us hold dear," Cook wrote. "They go against the very principles our nation was founded on, and they have the potential to undo decades of progress toward greater equality."

Sainz said that Cook's public opposition to Indiana's law—"on behalf of Apple," as Cook wrote—represents a watershed moment in the evolution of the business community's support for the LGBT equality movement. "When corporate leaders like Tim Cook use the word 'dangerous,' you know we've reached a tipping point," said Sainz.

Julie Samuels, executive director of Engine, a non-profit advocacy group that represents startup companies, said the tech community is starting to find its voice on major national issues. "It's no wonder we've seen pushback on what's happening in Indiana," said Samuels. "We're seeing the tech community make its voice heard on social issues."

Cook, the CEO of America's most valuable company, is only one of many high-profile tech leaders who have spoken out against "religious freedom" laws.

Marc Benioff, CEO of the Silicon Valley software titan Salesforce, has waged a high-profile social media campaign against Indiana's new law. Last week, Benioff announced he would cancel all company events in Indiana.

"These companies are speaking up for a simple reason," said Sainz. "They realize that they need to welcome and engage employees from diverse backgrounds. And they understand that if there's a stigma in the workplace it has a corrosive effect that inhibits creativity and is bad for business."

Jeremy Stoppelman, CEO of online ratings and reviews giant Yelp, offered a stark warning to state lawmakers around the country who might be considering similar bills.

"These laws set a terrible precedent that will likely harm the broader economic health of the states where they have been adopted, the businesses currently operating in those states and, most importantly, the consumers who could be victimized under these laws," Stoppelman wrote.

"It is unconscionable to imagine that Yelp would create, maintain, or expand a significant business presence in any state that encouraged discrimination by businesses against our employees, or consumers at large," Stoppelman added.

Max Levchin, a prominent Silicon Valley entrepreneur and co-founder of PayPal, slammed Indiana's new law on Twitter. "What is happening in Indiana is pretty unbelievable," Levchin wrote. "However it's dressed up, it's a signal that discrimination is welcome in this state."

Vickie Henry, a senior staff attorney at Gay & Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), said the tech community's vigorous outcry against Indiana's law represents a milestone in the decades-long fight for LGBT rights.

"We're in new territory here," said Henry. "The way that tech companies are speaking out on this issue has reached a new level. Tech companies have gotten the message that businesses need happy employees with equal benefits and protections for themselves and their families."

Henry added that the backlash against Indiana's new law represents a "cautionary note for other states that are considering similar legislation."

Bill Oesterle, CEO of online recommendation giant Angie's List, which is based in Indianapolis, has also been a leading critic of the Indiana law. Last week, Oesterle announced that his company would halt its $40 million expansion project in the state.

"Angie's List is open to all and discriminates against none and we are hugely disappointed in what this bill represents," said Oesterle.

Sainz pointed out that on a purely political basis, Oesterle is an unlikely opponent of Indiana's law. "Bill Oesterle is a conservative Republican who gave $150,000 to Mike Pence's campaign, so we're not talking about an avowed liberal who wants to embarrass the governor," he said.

Sainz said that the tech community is uniquely positioned to influence public policy, because of the industry's critical importance to the US economy. And he suggested that the Indiana controversy might herald a new boldness on the part of tech companies to speak out on social issues.

"Nothing turns heads or gets attention like the tech sector," said Sainz. "When the tech community speaks up in a way that is so loud and definitive, policymakers who don't pay attention do so at their own peril."