The Change.org petition calling for a boycott of A&E Networks if it does not bring back Duck Dynasty’s Phil Robertson and apologize for placing him on indefinite hiatus has attracted more than 100,000 signatures.
Phil Robertson, 67, came under fire this week for anti-gay comments he made in a recent interview with GQ magazine.
Phil Robertson came under fire this week for anti-gay comments he made in a recent interview with GQ magazine
“Duck Dynasty has a huge following and WE THE PEOPLE stand behind Phil Robertson and his family,” reads the petition, which has attracted nearly 108,000 signatures.
“We stand for faith and freedom. We stand for family and values. Those who disagree have the God given right to, that doesn’t mean Phil needs to be punished for exercising his rights.”
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A&E Networks still remains quiet as it receives hundreds of thousands of petitions against its decision to suspend Duck Dynasty’s Phil Robertson.
Since its Wednesday decision to “indefinitely” suspend Phil Robertson, A&E has yet to publicly clarify what the future of Duck Dynasty reality show might be, what they’ll do with their block of reruns, or even what it really means to be “indefinitely” suspended.
The network’s lack of communication has done nothing to stem the tide of detractors who strongly disagree with its decision to put Phil Robertson on the bench over anti-gay remarks quoted in GQ magazine.
A Change.org petition demanding that Phil Robertson be reinstated and the network issue an apology was steadily climbing toward 100,000 signatures Friday.
A separate petition at a website called IStandWithPhil.com makes a similar appeal. Hosted by the online community Faith Driven Consumers, the website helps its members spend their money with companies that fall in line with their spiritual beliefs. The petition on IStandWithPhil.com had surpassed 130,000 signatures by Friday evening.
A&E Networks still remains quiet as it receives hundreds of thousands of petitions against its decision to suspend Duck Dynasty’s Phil Robertson
Those who’ve signed the IStandWithPhil.com petition are asking for their “views (to) be treated with equality and respect in America’s rich rainbow of diversity,” and for the “network to immediately reinstate Mr. Robertson to <<Duck Dynasty>>, and to formally apologize to him, his family, and the millions of viewers who tune in every week, stand by him, and share his worldview”.
“While the LGBT community may be offended by his opposing viewpoint, your rash, discriminatory, and unfair treatment toward Mr. Robertson – a recognized symbol of the faith community – is a slap in the face to Faith Driven Consumers and everyday Americans alike.”
Both websites are urging people not to watch A&E programming in the meantime.
So far, the number of petitioners doesn’t compare with the millions that Duck Dynasty has drawn to A&E – its fourth-season premiere in August set a record with 11.8 million watching, and the season finale in October brought in 8.4 million – but those signatures would give any network exec flop sweat. Especially when the rest of the Robertson family has stoked the fire with a statement that suggests the future of the show might be in jeopardy.
“We have had a successful working relationship with A&E but, as a family, we cannot imagine the show going forward without our patriarch at the helm,” the Robertson family said in a statement.
“We are in discussions with A&E to see what that means for the future of <<Duck Dynasty>>.”
A person with close ties to A&E noted that the Robertson family is under contract, thereby reducing the chances that the family will show up on another channel anytime soon.
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More than 100,000 Americans have petitioned the White House to allow their states to secede from the US, after President Barack Obama’s re-election.
The appeals were filed on the White House’s We the People website.
Most of the 20 states with petitions voted for Republican Mitt Romney.
The US constitution contains no provisions for states to secede from the union. By Monday night the White House had not responded.
In total, more than 20 petitions have been filed. One for Texas has reached the 25,000-signature threshold at which the White House promises a response.
The last time states officially seceded, the US Civil War followed.
More than 100,000 Americans have petitioned the White House to allow their states to secede from the US, after President Barack Obama’s re-election
Most of the petitions merely quote the opening line of America’s Declaration of Independence from Britain, in which America’s founders stated their right to “dissolve the political bands” and form a new nation.
Currently, the most popular petition is from Texas, which voted for Mitt Romney by some 15 percentage points more than it did for the Democratic incumbent.
The text complains of “blatant abuses” of Americans’ rights.
It cites the Transportation Security Administration, whose staff has been accused of intrusive screening at airports.
