Roy Cooper has been North Carolina’s governor for 46 days, and revoking House Bill 2 – a law that overturns and bans local statutes that protect LGBT+ people from discrimination – is still a top priority. The legislation, which also forbids transgender people from using bathrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identity in all state public buildings, is supported by Republican lawmakers, who falsely argue that if trans people are legally allowed to use the bathrooms aligned with their gender identity, men will enter women’s bathrooms to harass and sexually assault women.
Consequently, North Carolina has lost over $395 million in business investement, owing to boycotts from businesses and organizations including PayPal, Deutsche Bank, A+E Networks, 21st Century Fox, Bruce Springsteen, Pearl Jam, the NBA, and NCAA. Over 200 major CEOs and business leaders signed a letter asking the former Governor Pat McCrory to repeal the law, to no avail.
Vox reports that Governor Cooper has announced his second and latest HB2 repeal proposal. Cooper’s deal requires cities and counties that propose new LGBT+ non-discrimination mandates to give the state legislature 30 days’ notice and intensifies the sanctions for crimes committed in public bathrooms and locker rooms. Some LGBT+ organizations have come out against Cooper’s repeal. They argue that it addresses problems based on a myth and burdens local governments trying to protect the +LGBT community.