State Watch

Rhode Island lawmaker makes pitch to firms boycotting Georgia abortion law

Greg Nash

Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) has a message for the production companies vowing not to film in Georgia due to its newly passed abortion law: Come to Rhode Island instead.

“Rhode Island has a workforce that’s second to none. Minutes from the ocean. And we respect the rights of women to make their own health care decisions,” he wrote.

Cicilline, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, tweeted the invitation on Sunday, almost a week after Georgia passed a restrictive abortion law that bans the practice as soon as a fetal heartbeat can be detected — which can come as early as six weeks into pregnancy.{mosads}

After Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed the so-called heartbeat bill, several members of the entertainment industry, including David Simon, creator of “The Wire,” indicated they will not conduct business in the state.

“Can only speak for my production company. Our comparative assessments of locations for upcoming development will pull Georgia off the list until we can be assured the health options and civil liberties of our female colleagues are unimpaired,” Simon tweeted on Thursday.

Christine Vachon, CEO of the production company behind the Oscar-winning film “Still Alice,” wrote on Twitter that “Killer Films will no longer consider Georgia as a viable shooting location until this ridiculous law is overturned.”

A handful of others have joined in the boycott.

The outcry follows a letter written in March, addressed to Kemp and Georgia Speaker of the House David Ralston (R), from actress Alyssa Milano and signed by 49 other actors opposed to the legislation.

“As actors, our work often brings us to Georgia,” the actors wrote. “But we cannot in good conscience continue to recommend our industry remain in Georgia if H.B. 481 becomes law.”

Tags Abortion Boycott David Cicilline Georgia heartbeat bill Hollywood Rhode Island

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