Oops! It looks like the recent efforts of the North Carolina congress and governor to discriminate against gay, lesbian, and transgender individuals are not just disgusting, but possibly illegal!
North Carolina is getting sued after Gov. McCrory signed a bill blocking local governments from passing anti-discrimination laws for LGBT individuals. The bill also regulates bathroom usage of transgender individuals.
Three individuals and two advocacy groups filed suit on Monday morning claiming that the law violates a person’s access to equal protection, privacy, and liberty. The suit references protections under the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the Title IX of the Education Act of 1972.
By specifically targeting LGTB people for discrimination, the suit argues that the plaintiff’s rights to equal protection are being blatantly violated.
The law makes North Carolina the first state to require that public universities and their students to only use the restrooms that match their birth certificate.
Joaquín Carcaño, a transman and staffperson at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill; Payton Grey McGarry, a transman and student at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro; and Angela Gilmore, a lesbian and associate dean at North Carolina Central University are all listed as plaintiffs on the suit. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of North Carolina and Equality North Carolina are also listed as plaintiffs.
Lawsuit defendants include North Carolina governor McCrory and the University of North Carolina system.
In the 17 states and 225 cities with laws banning anti-LGBT discrimination, there has not been any known attempts to use anti-discrimination laws for predatory behaviors. Nonetheless, transgender individuals were demonized by the North Carolina congress, where transgender women were called “men” and told they were dangerous to cisgender women.
Unfortunately, the North Carolina law is only one example of many shameful attempts around the country to pass anti-LGBT legislation. Lawmakers in more than a dozen states have introduced bills limiting transgender bathroom use this year. Every legislator who has proposed such a bill is a registered Republican.
Featured image is by m01229, available under a Creative Commons 2.0 license.
