Bruce Springsteen has been called a “bully” by a North Carolina Republican congressman over his decision to cancel a show in the state due to an anti-LGBTQ law.

Springsteen cancelled the show, which would have taken place yesterday, on Friday citing a law that critics have said discriminates against LGBTQ people. The law requires public institutions to post signs designation that bathrooms be used solely based on the biological sex stated on people’s birth certificates.

Speaking to the Hollywood Reports, the congressman, Mark Walker, described the move as “disappointing”. He said that Bruce is known to be a member of the “radical left and he’s got every right to be so, but I consider this a bully tactic. It’s like when a kid gets upset and says he’s going to take his ball and go home. Walker says that the law does not target LGBTQ people but instead imposters. “It’s a little crazy to think sexual predators wouldn’t be devious enough to pull something off if they were free to go into any bathroom they want,” he said.

On Friday, pulling out of the show, Springsteen said: “Some things are more important than a rock show, and this fight against prejudice and bigotry, which is happening as I write, is one of them. It is the strongest means I have for raising my voice in opposition to those who continue to push us backwards instead of forwards.”