Stacey Abrams urges Hollywood to ‘#StayAndFight’ in Georgia against abortion bill

Former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams (D) will travel to Hollywood to meet with entertainment industry officials and encourage them not to boycott the state in the wake of controversial abortion restrictions, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Monday.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed legislation last month that would ban all abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected, typically within six weeks of pregnancy. The law is set to take effect on Jan. 1 barring a legal challenge.

In recent weeks, a growing list of Hollywood stars and companies have signed onto boycotts against filming in the state over the law. Georgia has the most generous film tax incentives in the country, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.{mosads}

But Abrams is working with Ilyse Hogue, president of the abortion-rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America, to convince Hollywood not to abandon the jobs the film industry brings to Georgia.

Instead, Abrams is asking the industry to #StayAndFight, donating to candidates and groups who are working to challenge the controversial laws.

Abrams told the Los Angeles Times last month that Georgia is “in a unique position to fight back — not only against the legislation here but the legislation around the country — and to fund the defeat of these politicians and their horrible behavior by using the resources available through the entertainment industry.”  

Abrams is set to meet with industry heads on June 11. An invitation distributed by former CBS chairwoman Nina Tassler said the meeting will address the “reality that employees in the state may not have full access to healthcare or the freedom to make decisions about their futures and their families.”

“Many of us have projects in the state. I know it’s complicated,” Tassler wrote, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “There’s lots of money and jobs at stake – for us and for the people of Georgia. That’s why Ilyse Hoge and Stacey Abrams want to meet with us.”

Kemp postponed an annual visit to Los Angeles to meet with the entertainment industry in May after studios and executives threatened to protest, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.