If there’s any silver lining to be found in the wave of religious freedom measures sweeping state legislatures across the country, it’s that the controversy has focused national attention on the nearly 30 states that have yet to pass non-discrimination protections for their LGBT citizens.
RELATED: Arkansas Gov. Hutchinson asks for changes to religious freedom bill
On Wednesday, 39 leaders in the tech industry issued a joint statement supporting the expansion of civil rights laws to include protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The signatories include the heads of Affirm, Yelp and Salesforce — some of the most ardent opponents of the religious freedom measures that recently passed Republican-controlled legislatures in Indiana and Arkansas, despite warnings that these measures would sanction anti-LGBT discrimination. Top executives at Ebay, Twitter, AirBnB and and other companies also signed on to the statement.
“We believe it is critically important to speak out about proposed bills and existing laws that would put the rights of minorities at risk,” the statement said. “The transparent and open economy of the future depends on it, and the values of this great nation are at stake.”
The letter should hold particular sway over Arkansas’ Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who has made it a priority to attract tech talent to his state. Earlier Wednesday, Hutchinson said he would not sign his state’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) unless lawmakers changed it to directly mirror a federal version of the law. Arkansas — like most states in the country — currently does not bar discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.
“Religious freedom, inclusion, and diversity can co-exist and everyone including LGBT people and people of faith should be protected under their states’ civil rights laws,” the tech executives’ ‘ statement said. “No person should have to fear losing their job or be denied service of housing because of who they are or whom they love.”
Below is the full list of signatories:
Max Levchin, CEO, Affirm
Mark Pincus, Chairman, Zynga
Jeremy Stoppelman, CEO, Yelp
Marc Benioff, CEO, SalesForce
Jack Dorsey, CEO, Square
Dick Costolo, CEO, Twitter
Joe Green, CEO, Lyft
Brian Chesky, CEO, AirBnB
Joe Gebbia, CPO, AirBnB
Nathan Blecharczyk, CTO, AirBnB
Ron Conway, CEO, Axon JuriMed Group LLC
John Donahoe, CEO, Ebay
Paul Graham, CoFounder, YCombinator
Rich Barton, Chairman, Zillow Group
Chad Hurley, CEO, Mixbit
Adora Cheung, CEO, Homejoy
Phil Libin, CEO, Evernote
Trevor Traina, CEO, IfOnly
Nirav Tolia, CEO, NextDoor
Dion Lim, CEO, NextLesson
Bret Taylor, CEO, Quip
Joe Lonsdale, CEO, Formation 8
Thomas Layton, Chairman, Elance-odesk
Fabio Rosati, CEO, Elance-odesk
Dave Morin, CEO, Path
Mark Goldstein, Chairman, BackOps
Kevin Rose, CEO, North Technologies
Yves Behar, CCO, Jawbone
Padmasree Warrior, CTSO, Cisco Systems
Tony Conrad, CEO, about.me
Sunil Paul, CEO, Sidecar
Michael Moritz, Chairman, Sequoia Capital
Dan Schulman, President, PayPal
Devin Wenig, President, eBay Marketplaces
Robert Hohman, CEO, Glassdoor
Laurene Powell Jobs, Founder and Chair, Emerson Collective
Mohan Warrior, CEO, Alphalight
David Spector, CIO, Penny Mac
Shervin Pishevar, CoFounder, Sherpa Ventures
Emma Margolin
Emma Margolin is a reporter at MSNBC.com.