{"id":4718,"date":"2011-05-25T08:50:58","date_gmt":"2011-05-25T15:50:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nerdseyeview.com\/blog\/?p=4718"},"modified":"2011-05-25T10:07:55","modified_gmt":"2011-05-25T17:07:55","slug":"the-ethics-of-graceland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nerdseyeview.com\/blog\/2011\/05\/25\/the-ethics-of-graceland\/","title":{"rendered":"The Ethics of Graceland"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Day<\/a><\/p>\n

If things go according to plan, this fall, I’m going to see The South. The Mississippi Delta where the blues were born. Graceland. I’m going to eat BBQ and greens. A state or two will become more than just an outline on the map. I was genuinely thrilled until my friend B said this: “You shouldn’t spend one nickel in Tennessee. Do you not know about their anti-gay legislation?”<\/p>\n

I did know about this, but only in a passing sort of way because I’d heard about the bill that had been mocked as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. I did not<\/em> know, until I looked, about another bill, vetoed by Tennessee’s Republican governor. This other bill added language that would extend anti-discrimination protection in Nashville. “The Nashville ordinance prohibited companies that discriminate because of sexual orientation or gender identity from receiving city contracts.” (Business Week<\/a>)<\/p>\n

For the record, I’m sick to death of anti-gay politics. I don’t care who you marry or what your religion says about it. My marriage is fine, thank you, in spite of the myriad gays and lesbians and transgender folks getting on in the world as best they can. I wish that “You’re here, you’re queer, I’m used to it” would migrate to a national policy. Some of my best friends, blah blah blah, committed relationships for more than 20 years, blah blah blah, raising beautiful happy kids, blah blah blah. Etc. Yawn. Seriously, THIS is what you’re in a lather about? You must have it pretty good.<\/p>\n

In trying to unravel the politics behind the anti-anti-discrimination move, I got lost in a rat hole of business vs. local vs. state vs. national politics. The business objections seem specious to me; I do not understand how adding gender and sexual orientation to a non-discrimination clause translates into a financial burden. It’s easy to go from here to getting bogged down in a complicated discussion about constitutional politics, states rights, the 14th Amendment, the ERA, oh, it goes on and on.<\/p>\n

Tennessee politics may end up being a non-issue, as my destination is actually Mississippi. But back in 2003, Mississippi’s gay community called for a boycott of Gulfport, a resort town popular with gay tourists. In 2006, a restrictive abortion bill resulted in a call for a South Dakota boycott, no Mount Rushmore for you. It’s no longer relevant, but there was a call to boycott Hawaii until the state released Barack Obama’s birth certificate. Last year, activists called for a boycott of Arizona because of their absurd anti-immigrant legislation. Don’t go to Egypt. Burma. Israel. China.<\/p>\n

I sat down at my keyboard and hammered out an email to Tennessee Tourism. I asked them what their stance was on the anti-discrimination bill; I’m awaiting a reply. I also wondered if it would be possible to spend my money at only those businesses that share my politics — another absolute rat hole of research and confusion. (See also: I recently switched web hosts<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

While I wait for their reply, I find I’m forced to ponder a lot of complicated questions about the general thoughtlessness of how I spend my tourism dollars.\u00a0 Does that hotel chain pay its workers fairly? Does that tourism business reinvest in the local economy? Is the restaurant serving locally sourced food in an effort to reduce their carbon footprint? Did my waiter give money to the Tea Party? Where is the fuzzy border between my money and my mouth? Ethics are expensive, and I like the squeaky cleanliness of a hotel room that’s been disinfected with chemicals that are bad for everyone.<\/p>\n

Plus, I want to go to Graceland.<\/p>\n

Discuss.<\/p>\n

Awesome photo by Betsy Weber<\/a> via Flickr (Creative Commons<\/a>). Thank you, Betsy, for making it public and shareable. <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If things go according to plan, this fall, I’m going to see The South. The Mississippi Delta where the blues were born. Graceland. I’m going to eat BBQ and greens. A state or two will become more than just an outline on the map. I was genuinely thrilled until my friend B said this: “You … <\/p>\n


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