I don't know if you've been following this one, but it's generating a lot of coverage. To summarize, NC Gov. Pat McCrory called a special session of the legislature to pass HB2 in the wake of action by the Charlotte City Council broadening the city's civil rights protections to include transgender people. The bill was passed in twelve hours with no public testimony, and McCrory signed it immediately. In addition to overriding all municipal civil rights ordinances, the bill also overrides local ordinances concerning minimum wage and worker protections, and removes the ability to seek redress for any civil rights or discrimination complaints from the state courts. The pretext was "protecting our wives and daughters" from men dressing as women to get into women's restrooms and molest them. There are no reported cases of that happening in the 200+ jurisdictions that have passed laws allowing trans people to use the restroom of the sex with which they identify. The "public safety" issue is complete bullshit.
The backlash was immediate and severe -- NC has lost millions in new business, companies have halted plans for expansion in the state, high-profile musicians have cancelled concerts, and the loss in jobs has mounted to the thousands. McCrory, running true to form, insists that it's all the fault of "the Left."
And now, the Justice Department has notified the governor that the law is in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and has given the state until Monday to rescind it.
McCrory and the legislature, being right-wingers, have reacted as you might expect: when caught out doing something crappy, double down. The republican legislature is, of course, refusing to comply with the deadline
-- House Speaker Tim Moore is quoted as saying they are reviewing their legal options and will "take the time it takse." Since it only took twelve hours to pass the bill, five days should be plenty of time to review their legal options, which are pretty much nil.
This is going to be fun. North Carolina will sue (probably claiming "states rights" or some such nonsense) and lose. They'll fight it all the way to the Supreme Court, and all else being equal, will probably lose there.
McCrory is running for re-election; his poll numbers have dropped since this all blew up in his face. Be careful what bandwagon you jump on.
The backlash was immediate and severe -- NC has lost millions in new business, companies have halted plans for expansion in the state, high-profile musicians have cancelled concerts, and the loss in jobs has mounted to the thousands. McCrory, running true to form, insists that it's all the fault of "the Left."
And now, the Justice Department has notified the governor that the law is in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and has given the state until Monday to rescind it.
McCrory and the legislature, being right-wingers, have reacted as you might expect: when caught out doing something crappy, double down. The republican legislature is, of course, refusing to comply with the deadline
-- House Speaker Tim Moore is quoted as saying they are reviewing their legal options and will "take the time it takse." Since it only took twelve hours to pass the bill, five days should be plenty of time to review their legal options, which are pretty much nil.
This is going to be fun. North Carolina will sue (probably claiming "states rights" or some such nonsense) and lose. They'll fight it all the way to the Supreme Court, and all else being equal, will probably lose there.
McCrory is running for re-election; his poll numbers have dropped since this all blew up in his face. Be careful what bandwagon you jump on.
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