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NCTE Statement on Special Session to Repeal NC's HB2

Press Contact

Contact Name
Ash Orr (they/he)

This morning, the Charlotte City Council repealed its ordinance that provided nondiscrimination protections for LGBT people. Shortly thereafter, North Carolina Governor-elect Roy Cooper announced that the state’s General Assembly would hold a special session tomorrow (Tuesday, December 20) to repeal HB2, the state law that has been terrorizing transgender North Carolinians since March. As well as requiring that all transgender people in North Carolina use only restrooms that correspond with the gender marker on their birth certificates, HB2 also strips cities of the right to set their own minimum wages.

In response to these developments, Mara Keisling, Executive Director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, said:

“During the special session, members of the North Carolina General Assembly will have the chance to do the right thing for once and repeal HB2 fully. If they care about their state, they will completely repeal the law, because HB2 has had a devastating impact on North Carolinians, including transgender people – especially transgender children – not to mention on the state’s economy and reputation. This devastation was caused by Governor McCrory, who has been thoroughly repudiated by voters, and the irresponsible state legislature.

“Completely repealing HB2 is only the first step lawmakers must take to repair the harm they have done to their own constituents. Even after it is repealed, there will be a long way to go. Protections for LGBT people, like the ones that Charlotte had passed, are there to ensure that everyone is treated fairly. They exist in hundreds of other cities around the nation.

"We are disappointed that Charlotte’s commonsense ordinance was repealed in order to get the General Assembly to even consider a full repeal of HB2. A full repeal of HB2 will open a pathway for not only Charlotte, but also other cities in North Carolina, to pass protections in the future and ensure fairness for all their residents.”

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