Unfortunately, the issue still
generates controversy. I think controversy is good, so far as it goes, but it
should not extend to social and economic damage to North Carolina, and
Charlotte, NC, anymore. Let us look at the facts:
First, the travel bans. Just this
past Wednesday, April 12th, California’s attorney general, Xavier
Becerra, announced that his State would continue the travel ban on
taxpayer-funded travel to NC despite the repeal of HB2 in North Carolina. He
claimed the repeal and replacement law did not go far enough in protecting LGBT
people in North Carolina from discrimination, according to the Richmond
Times-Dispatch (Richmond, VA: 4/13/2017). In addition, the City of Chicago,
Illinois, and the State of Washington reaffirmed their travel bans to NC just
this past week, despite the repeal of HB2, according to The Charlotte
Observer (4/15/2017). Critics claim the new law is still discriminatory.
In contrast to these renewed bans on
travel to North Carolina, the NCAA and ACC college sports leagues gave a “vote
of confidence” to North Carolina after the repeal, according to The
Charlotte Observer (4/15/2017). They had moved significant sporting events
out of the State, previously, in protest of HB2. The NBA (National Basketball
Association) is considering bringing its All-Star Game back to Charlotte at
this time, also. It had pulled it out-of-state, previously, also in protest
against HB2. I support the return of the NBA All-Star Game back to Charlotte at
this time.
Next, we should take a look at the
new replacement law, itself. The civil rights community, including in North
Carolina, agrees that it does not go far enough. I would include the Mayor of
Charlotte in those ranks, however, and she just called for people and
government entities to drop their isolation and alienation of Charlotte and the
State of North Carolina. Mayor Roberts faces re-election this year in
Charlotte, also. I support her bid for re-election.
The problem with the new law, HB142, is that it leaves in place a ban on any new, nondiscrimination local ordinances across North Carolina until 2020, according to The Charlotte Observer (4/15/2017). Even so, the new, Democratic governor of NC, Roy Cooper, was reported to have said that the new deal would begin to reverse the economic damage already done to the State, and would prompt the return of sporting events and economic development back to North Carolina. This benefit would happen, he is reported to have said, despite the new law being, “not a perfect deal” and “not my preferred solution,” according to the New York Times (3/31/2017).
The state of the bathroom policy,
after the repeal of HB2, is to remove the state from the bathrooms, once again.
Only the State Legislature of North Carolina may now regulate any such rules
for and in the State, under the replacement State law, and no regulations
currently exist (The Charlotte Observer, 4/15/2017). That means police
officers will not need to be posted outside bathrooms to enforce hoped-for
equality inside the bathrooms for transgender people. Instead, there will be no
police in the bathrooms. The freedom that comes with no police in bathrooms
will continue, but the dilemma for transgender people using this bathroom or
that bathroom will remain unsolved, I think. The issue is left with our
culture, changing or otherwise, and with our civil society—not our government.
This is where the issue belongs, in my opinion, and where people should focus
their energy to create progress for transgender people, also, in my opinion. We
need to keep police, on-the-clock and on-duty, out of our bathrooms, I think,
although I wish no harm to our officers, either.
One less noticed provision that has
been repealed from HB2 is the clause that restricted access to State Courts in
North Carolina for any anti-discrimination, civil rights (or human rights) lawsuits,
stemming from any acts of discrimination in the State, regardless of any local
ordinances. This provision of HB2 fell without comment by civil rights
advocates or anyone else, according to the New York Times (3/31/2017). I
considered that quite a significant, discriminatory aspect of HB2, however, and
I am surprised no one commented on it in the press, positively or negatively,
and in fact, that the passing of the restriction from State Courts went
unnoticed, also, by the press. Barring any comment or criticism about this
provision, or about it being continued in the new law, which I understand it
has not been, that provision fell, I believe.
Therefore, although North Carolina
is not leading the way against discrimination, not by any means, still, the
State has restored standard, state-level access to justice to fight
discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, on par
with other states in the United States of America.
What’s more, on Friday, the
Republican administration of President Donald J. Trump dropped a federal
lawsuit against North Carolina, one that had been filed by former President
Barack Obama, on the basis that the State had been discriminating, under HB2.
President Trump dropped the case in response to North Carolina’s repeal of
House Bill 2.
Although more progress needs to be
made, in North Carolina and elsewhere, I think North Carolina is no longer a
pariah State in the United States of America, not on this basis. People should
drop their travel bans and isolation of the State, and return to North
Carolina.
—Nicholas
Patti
Charlotte, NC
Charlotte, NC
