Earlier this month, the Charlotte City Council passed an amended non-discrimination ordinance that is intended to give legal protections to the city’s LGBT community. That didn’t sit well with North Carolina’s Republican-dominated legislature. Screaming that the ordinance was a threat to public safety, they called a special session to not only repeal it, but to bar any other local government in the state from enacting a similar measure.
We already knew something like this was on the way. When it was apparent the ordinance would pass, Governor Pat McCrory warned that the General Assembly would almost certainly act to either water it down or repeal it. McCrory and others claimed that a provision that allows transgender people to use the public restroom of their gender identity threatened public safety. For those who are wondering how this is possible, there is no home rule in North Carolina. While local government authority is broadly construed, the state still has fairly broad power over local matters compared to other states with double-digit electoral votes.
State house speaker Tim Moore and lieutenant governor Dan Forest announced on Monday that they would call a special session to stop the ordinance from taking effect on April 1. Moore had already vowed that the legislature would do whatever it took “to correct this radical course” set in Charlotte. However, “radical” would be being extremely kind to describe what they passed today.
The bill, the “Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act,” not only repeals Charlotte’s ordinance, but forbids local governments from passing any ordinance intended to protect LGBT people. Instead, it enacts a statewide nondiscrimination law that does not include any protections for sexual orientation or gender identity. It also requires school districts and government facilities to maintain single-sex bathrooms.
But the bill goes further than that. It would bar local governments from enacting employment discrimination ordinances, and also appears to prevent private sector employees from filing wrongful termination suits in state court if their firing ran counter to public policy. That probably explains why the bill wasn’t even made public until hours before the session was to begin.
A poll by Public Policy Polling earlier this month indicated that only 25 percent of North Carolinians support repealing the ordinance. I have to wonder–does the legislature think those results are skewed by Charlotte, the Piedmont Triad, and the Triangle? After all, there are some who think those areas aren’t really North Carolina.
The bill passed by an overwhelming margin in the state house, and passed the state senate after the chamber’s Democrats walked out in protest. It now goes to McCrory for his signature. McCrory was unwilling to call a special session because he suspected the legislature would go beyond addressing the Charlotte ordinance. However, the legislature was able to make the call on its own authority by using a provision in the state constitution that allows three-fifths of both chambers’ memberships to do so.
Despite his previous misgivings, McCrory announced late Wednesday that he will sign the bill into law. But he may have to find someone else to defend it when–not if–it is challenged in court. State attorney general Roy Cooper, who is challenging McCrory’s reelection bid in November, rushed out with a burning statement condemning the legislature’s move just hours after the session began. Watch here.
Cooper pointed out that similar laws in Indiana and other states have done serious damage to their states’ economies and reputations. He accused McCrory of standing aside and letting “the loudest and most extreme voices” in the state pull the strings.
I’d add something else. If McCrory and the legislature are so concerned about public safety, where were they when Donald Trump warned that his supporters might riot if he’s denied the Republican nomination? But unless I’m very wrong, neither McCrory nor any of the state’s top Republicans have said a word–even after a thug cold-cocked and threatened a protester in Fayetteville.
If the man who is likely to win his party’s presidential nomination either cannot or will not take the most basic steps to ensure a safe environment at his rallies doesn’t amount to a public safety threat, then I’d like to know who sets the priorities of what passes for leadership in Raleigh. Their silence on this only makes the monstrosity that was passed today look even more outrageous. After all, you would think that an unsafe environment at a campaign rally would pose a bigger public safety threat than a non-discrimination ordinance.
