Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto D-NV., today called upon the organizers of the South by Southwest Conference and Music Festival to consider relocating their event.
In a letter to the organization’s CEO, Cortez Masto says the request is in reaction to Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s signing of SB 4, which she characterizes as one of the most extreme anti-immigrant and discriminatory state laws signed to date.
Texas’ SB 4 would allow local police officers to question a person’s immigration status during any detention or arrest, including a routine traffic stop. South by Southwest is usually held in Austin, Texas, and has an estimated economic impact of more than $220 million dollars.