North Carolina Governor Signs Repeal of Anti-Trans Bathroom Law

By: Paul Goldberg, Staff Writer

ATLANTA — The North Carolina General Assembly has been under major pressure from the business community to repeal the anti-Transgender bathroom Law they enacted in 2016 and now they have taken horrible steps in rectifying their error in judgement by sending the government a so called repeal of the anti-LGBTQ hate language-bill.

The North Carolina lawmakers passed in record time a repeal bill and sent it to the governor’s desk who promptly signed it in front of the press on Thursday March 30. By the governor signing the repeal, the controversial state law that had restricted transgender bathroom use in public buildings is now no longer the law of the state.

The bill, passed by both houses of the North Carolina General Assembly, was part of their new strategy of a compromise worked out earlier in the week between Republican legislative leaders and democratic Gov. Roy Cooper. “Today, we repealed HB2,” Mr. Cooper wrote on Twitter. “It wasn’t a perfect deal or my preferred solution, but an important first step for our state.” said Gov. Cooper.

But it isn’t all rainbows among the LGBTQ civil rights groups as many are angry over Gov. Cooper signing the bill. Even now after the cameras, news media reports and comments on both sides voicing their objections to the repeal, it is still unclear whether the signing of the new repeal bill into law would extricate North Carolina from the national controversy over legal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

The repealed law, known as House Bill 2, immediately triggered a national firestorm and backlash from businesses, entertainers and sports leagues that considered the anti-LGBTQ law to be discriminatory. Music artists such as Bruce Springsteen canceled concerts, the N.C.A.A., Atlantic Coast Conference and National Basketball Association have moved high-profile events from North Carolina.

This week, triggered the record setting passage of the repeal bill when it was announced that the N.C.A.A. had warned North Carolina that it could lose the opportunity to host championship sporting events through 2022, which could mean millions in lost revenue. The N.C.A.A had already relocated their championship tournament games that would have been played in the state during this academic year, including the Division I men’s basketball tournament.

The compromise bill passed the Senate, 32 to 16, in a late-morning vote after only brief discussion. It passed the House in the afternoon by a vote of 70 to 48 after fiery denunciations by some conservative and liberal members.

Phil Berger, a Republican and the Senate leader told the NY Times…”We acknowledge that many people were probably not pleased by the arrangement. However, he said, “compromise sometimes is difficult, and this bill represents that.” said Berger.