North Carolina’s Republican Gov Admits Defeat, Seeks FULL repeal of “Bathroom Bill”
North Carolina has had enough of the restrictive, detrimental and flagrantly discriminatory House Bill 2, or as it is better known as, “the bathroom bill.” The Charlotte City Council convened this morning in a surprise session under Republican Gov. Pat McCrory, who originally passed the bill, to take down the legislation—voting for its repeal by 10-0. It will now go further through the state, and on to Raleigh, as more votes are needed for a full revocation.
McCrory, who lost the governorship to Democrat Roy Cooper, felt the consequences of the widely unpopular bill during his term. His unwavering support for it cost him his job. McCrory’s spokesperson back-pedaled on the Governor’s original views on the bill, attempting to blame Democrats for all shortcomings, commenting:
“Gov. Pat McCrory has always advocated a repeal of the over-reaching Charlotte ordinance, but those efforts were always blocked by Jennifer Roberts, Roy Cooper and other Democratic activists,” spokesman Graham Wilson said. “This sudden reversal, with little notice after the gubernatorial election, sadly proves this entire issue originated by the political left was all about politics and winning the governor’s race at the expense of Charlotte and our entire state.”
Governor-elect Cooper also commented on the repeal, which he clearly advocates for, saying that:
“Senate Leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore assured me that as a result of Charlotte’s vote, a special session will be called for Tuesday to repeal HB2 in full,” Cooper said in a statement today. “I hope they will keep their word to me and with the help of Democrats in the legislature, HB2 will be repealed in full. Full repeal will help to bring jobs, sports and entertainment events back and will provide the opportunity for strong LGBT protections in our state.”
The “bathroom bill” was North Carolina’s discriminatory legislation that embarrassingly forces transgender individuals to use bathrooms that correspond to the gender on their birth certificates as opposed to the gender they identify with, and live their lives as. This destructive measure is also used to ban discrimination suits by employees in the private sector, such that those who were discriminated against because of their gender, sexuality, race, religion, religion or handicap were left totally powerless and without any claim.
The state suffered as a result of the Republican-backed hateful legislation, with backlash to HB2 coming directly from businesses. PayPal decided that they would not open an operations center in Charlotte and the NBA opted out of having the All-Star game in the city.
Even small business owners have felt the brunt of the bill. Maxwell Hanks, a broker with Spectrum Properties, said that the bill has directly led to decreased recruitment in the state. “I think on a go-forward basis rescinding HB2 will be a great way to close out 2016 and start 2017,” he explained to the Charlotte Observer.
The General Assembly will meet on Tuesday to repeal the law. State Rep. Chris Sgro, a Democrat from Guilford County, commented: “All eyes…are on Raleigh watching for the General Assembly to do the right thing.”
The repeal of the House Bill 2 should go without question. It is disgusting legislation; the silver lining here is that boycotts can work—the city was hurt where it mattered most…their economy. Let this be a lesson to Republicans who want to force their outlandish and uninformed views on others; your decisions will not go unchecked.
