Tracy Morgan Cancels His Only Mississippi Show Over The State’s Anti-LGBT Law

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Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock alum Tracy Morgan has been touring the country for the first time since his near-fatal car accident on the New Jersey Turnpike. Uproxx wrote up the new show, Picking Up the Pieces, shortly after it began in February, and since then the comedian has been perfecting the hour while out on the road and during occasional talk-show visits. Thanks to Mississippi’s recently approved “Religious Accommodations Act,” or HB 1523, however, the Horseshoe Tunica Casino in Robinsonville will no longer host the 47-year-old comic. That’s because Morgan canceled the performance scheduled for Friday, April 29.

Per an official statement released by Morgan’s representatives through the Mississippi ABC affiliate WLOX, the comedian “did not make this decision lightly”:

“He very much looks forward to rescheduling his tour dates in the area after the ‘Protecting Freedom of Conscience from Government Discrimination Act,’ is either repealed or heavily amended.”

Morgan’s addition to the growing number of cancellations due to HB 1523 is interesting, as the comic infamously invoked the ire of pro-LGBT groups back in 2011. During a 2011 stand-up gig in Nashville, Tennessee, he allegedly launched into an anti-gay tirade that was widely reported by members of the audience on social media. Morgan issued a public apology shortly after the story went viral.

Since the state’s Republican governor, Phil Bryant, signed HB 1523 into law earlier this month, several local and national businesses have launched protests against the new legislation. Talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres dedicated a segment on her program to the law, while actress Sharon Stone relocated her short film project outside of the state.

(Via WLOX)

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