The law blocks local and state protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and directs which restrooms transgender people can use in public buildings.
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Democratic Rep. Grier Martin of Raleigh, a sponsor of the repeal bill, said the new law has stained North Carolina’s reputation and harmed it economically. Activists and protestors on both sides of HB2 greeted lawmakers Monday – supporters rallied behind the Legislative Building while the Moral Monday Movement plan to hold a mass sit-in inside the General Assembly.
House Bill 2 is expected to get the bulk of the attention Monday as state lawmakers return to work for the North Carolina General Assembly’s short session, however, teachers are hoping their needs don’t get overlooked.
“Their goal is to use this poisonous brew to intoxicate many, many people’s minds in North Carolina”, said Barber.
The head of North Carolina’s leading gay-rights group is being sworn in as a member of the North Carolina House on the eve of this year’s regular work session.
Gov. Pat McCrory (R) has been widely criticized over the law, formerly known as HB 2 before it was enacted.
“We can not be silent in the face of this race-based, class-based, homophobic and transphobic attack on wage earners, civil rights and the LGBTQ community”, said Barber, who calls the law “Hate Bill 2”.
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At a news conference with Cameron on Friday, Obama said the law should be overturned, while the British prime minister added that laws should be used “to end discrimination, rather than try to enhance it”. Major artists, including Bruce Springsteen, Ringo Starr, and Pearl Jam, have cancelled performances in North Carolina as a result of HB 2, and National Basketball Association commissioner Adam Silver said on Thursday that the league will move the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte if the law is not repealed. Passed in March during a specially called session, the bill has stirred controversy since its inception. After about an hour, they chose to file out of the building so they could rejoin the larger planned sit-in in the afternoon.
