Adult entertainment site blocks access in North Carolina
A major adult site is restricting access to viewers due to the state’s recent anti-LGBT law.
Last month the North Carolina Republicans passed a law which voids all local ordinances protecting LGBT rights, and permits businesses to discriminate against LGBT people on the grounds of religious belief.
The new law, signed by Republican Governor Pat McCrory, also bans transgender students in public schools from using their preferred bathroom.
McCrory’s decision has attracted a legal challenge as well as a growing boycott of the state in both the business and entertainment communities – with Bruce Springsteen and Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz among those to ban performances in the state.
However, the latest protest against the bill may leave natives of the state frustrated in a whole new way.
Adult film giant XHamster.com is blocking access to all IP addresses within North Carolina.
If users try to access the site, they are greeted by a page criticising the state’s “hypocrisy”.
“The Incredible Hypocrisy of North Carolina,” the page reads. “The land where Homophobia is Law.”
The page then quotes a number of eye-opening stats about users in the state, claiming nearly 320,000 people have viewed gay categories on the site in this year alone.
Its also shows which the types of porn content that users in North Carolina search for – with both “gay” and “shemale” ranking highly.
The site then asks North Carolina to stop its “homophobic insanity.”
“We are appalled by the recent events that have transpired in North Carolina,” XHamster told PerezHilton.com in a statement.
“We have spent the last 50 years fighting for equality for everyone and these laws are discriminatory which XHamster.com does not tolerate.
“As of today, access to XHamster.com is blacked out in the state of North Carolina until further notice.
“Judging by the stats of what you North Carolinians watch, we feel this punishment is a severe one. We will not standby and pump revenue into a system that promotes this type of garbage,” it adds.
“We respect all sexualities and embrace them.”
Appropriately, XHamster.com’s tagline is “Just porn, no bullshit”.
