U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, who spoke at a press conference after filing the lawsuit, said that at present the Justice Department is seeking certification from North Carolina to ban the bathroom law, but squeezing federal funding was one of the options that could be considered in future.
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Less than a decade ago, such a position about gender identity would hardly have generated the maelstrom now centered over North Carolina.
The move sets up a potentially epic standoff with the Obama administration, with billions in federal aid at stake.
According to the survey, 57 percent of respondents oppose laws that require transgender people to use the bathroom that matches their gender at birth, while 38 percent support such laws.
In its lawsuit, the Justice Department also alleges violations of Title IX of the Civil Rights Act, which addresses discrimination in schools, the Education Act and the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act. “This is about the dignity and respect that we accord our fellow citizens”, she said. “I also think that the laws that have been passed there are wrong”.
The fight for transgender rights has just begun, but in North Carolina, the epicenter of controversy, things seem to be getting even more heated.
Human Rights Campaign (HRC) president Chad Griffin commended Attorney General Lynch for “taking action to enforce the rule of law and protect the civil rights of all North Carolinians”. PayPal abandoned a planned 400-employee operation center in Charlotte, and Deutsche Bank froze expansion plans near Raleigh. Almost 200 corporate leaders from across the country, including Charlotte-based Bank of America, have urged the measure’s repeal. He wrote that “some segment of the state’s African Americans endure socioeconomic disparities that can be linked to state discrimination”, but the plaintiffs “failed to show that such disparities will have materially adverse effects on the ability of minority voters to cast a ballot”.
Since he signed the bill over former colleagues’ objections, North Carolina has emerged as a national political battleground, with businesses withdrawing plans to expand into the state and entertainers like Bruce Springsteen, Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas, Pearl Jam and Boston canceling scheduled performances. The DOJ needs to follow California’s example & make this progressive legislation the law of the land.
Indeed, over the past few years, American attitudes toward the country’s estimated 700,000 transgender residents have undergone a significant shift.
The U.S. Education Department and other federal agencies could try to cut off money to North Carolina to force compliance.
As part of the suit, the DOJ is threatening to significantly reduce federal funding to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety and the University Of North Carolina should the state choose not to comply and continue efforts to implement the bathroom bill.
The state university system was expected to issue a separate response to the warning letter.
The Board of Governors has scheduled an emergency meeting for 4:30 p.m. Tuesday to receive a closed-session legal briefing on the lawsuits.
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“Not only will the university lose approximately $1.4 billion in funding, but the students will lose millions and millions of dollars in federal funding to be able to attend”, Tedesco said.
