Wednesday, February 22, 2017

When is a repeal not? When it comes out of Raleigh. Here's Son of HB2!

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The two Republicans- Chuck McGrady and Ted Davis, Jr.- supported HB2 when it was jammed through the General Assembly eleven months ago, along with one of the two Democrats, Ken Goodman of Scotland and Hoke Counties. Goodman told Indy Week last year that he voted for the bill solely out of bathroom anxieties.

Marvin Lucas, a Cumberland County Democrat, voted against HB2. McGrady was absent the day HB2 was passed.

Five more Republicans are co-sponsors: John Faircloth; John Fraley; Holly Grange; Craig Horn, and Jon Hardister. All voted for HB2.

Rep. McGrady says he has been working on this bill for ten months. He ain’t got much for show for the time.

The Charlotte Observer’s editorial page posted tonight,

Opinions are flying about McGrady’s bill, but these are facts:

▪ It provides no protections for LGBT citizens.

▪ It bans cities from passing “bathroom” provisions of any kind.

▪ It allows cities to pass LGBT protections (minus bathrooms), with 30 days notice, but such ordinances would then be put to a public vote if opponents round up enough signatures.

▪ It expands protected classes for employment and housing discrimination, but that expansion does not include LGBT citizens.

In summary, if this bill becomes law, LGBT discrimination will be legal. People who look like men would be required to use the women’s room. And LGBT minority rights will be at the mercy of a majority vote. Basic human rights should not be up for a vote.

That’s why we doubt it would bring back the NCAA, the ACC, the NBA and others who are crossing the state off their lists. Those organizations have said they don’t want to do business in a state that sanctions LGBT discrimination. North Carolina still would.


When asked if HB 186 would appease the NCAA, ACC and other organizations that have refused to hold events in North Carolina, McGrady said he couldn’t speak for them but he didn’t see why it wouldn’t.

“I think we’ve hit the sweet spot,” he said.

HB186 would put in place a statewide nondiscrimination law that does not include any language about sexual orientation or gender identity. In some places, it replaces the word “gender” with “sex.”

The bill would give cities the authority to adopt nondiscrimination measures to protect the LGBTQ community but it comes with caveats and a public referendum clause. Cities would have to wait 90 days to implement such a measure and if opponents gathered enough signatures against it, it would be put up to the referendum.

If a nondiscrimination measure was adopted, it would not apply to extraterritorial jurisdiction, bathrooms, showers or changing facilities, state or county entities or charitable organizations and religious institutions.

In effect, the bill guarantees a referendum to vote other people’s rights up or down.  In 2015, the Charlotte mayoral election turnout was 96,356 out of over 500,000 registered voters, so under 10,000 names will be all that is required: after a year of lower turnout, even less.

The bill specifically exclude LGBT residents from any protection against discrimination of any type. Cities and counties would still be barred from requiring their private contractors not to discriminate. Lots of new bathroom criminal penalties would be stacked up.

A referendum would be triggered if valid signatures of ten percent of the number of voters in the last municipal election were submitted. The bill helpfully even dictates the form of the question to be put to voters.

1 comment:

  1. As usual our stupid Raleigh lawmakers are trying to pull one over on us again. Why they think we are as stupid as they are I don't know but write and call them people. We can't let this happen.

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