If Indiana’s RFRA law does trigger a national boycott, the protest won’t depend on ordinary citizens; activists hope to recruit businesses to carry out the boycott for them by proxy.

If anything, the protest will resemble the proposed Dolce and Gabbana boycott (over the designers’ remarks on in-vitro fertilization and surrogate pregnancies for gay couples), for which activists relied on celebrities to publicly avoid the brand (because the clothes were too expensive to be boycotted by the masses).

Previous high-profile boycotts of states and municipalities have depended on conventions and sporting events to pledge to avoid the states in an effort to inflict economic damages until the offending law is changed. These protests have a mixed record, and activists have preferred to adopt other, more effective strategies, like lawsuits, when possible.