North Carolina governor signs anti-LGBT bill

The North Carolina General Assembly held an emergency special session with the specific purpose of passing the most regressive anti-LGBT bill in the land, and Gov. Pat McCrory promptly signed it into law.  What it does is prevent cities in the state from passing anti-discrimination ordinances that protect gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender people -- along with other areas of taking control away from local governments.

What made this special session "necessary" was that the city of Charlotte had recently passed an ordinance that allows transgender people to use public restrooms according to the gender with which they identify themselves.   Conservatives were horrified that a biological male, who now publicly identifies as female, would use the same public facilities as girls and women.

A person who was identified at birth as male must use restrooms for males -- even if now dressing and appearing to be a woman.  And vice versa.  Can you imagine the reverse?   A biological woman now identifying as a man -- who now dresses as a man, perhaps has gone through hormone transition and now has a beard -- being forced by law to use the ladies' room?    Just imagine how quickly the police would be called -- about "a man in the Ladies Room."   How much danger would this transman be in -- simply for obeying the law?

What are they afraid of?     Certainly not rape by someone who is trying to renounce his maleness?    Do they think predators will now simply dress up in women's clothes in order to gain access to women's rest rooms and assault women and girls?    Well, yes, that is exactly what they claim will happen.   Come one, people.  Do you have one shred of evidence that this has happened in the many cities that did exactly what Charlotte did?   No, there is none.  That is a completely bogus issue.

The level of ignorance (frankly, it is often willful ignorance) among social conservatives is sometimes stunning.   If they can't tell the difference between a predatory man and a transwoman, then perhaps we need some elementary sex education for the adults.

It's worse than that.   This hastily passed law paints with a wide brush.  Yes, it blocks local governments' anti-discrimination laws;  but it also preempts city policies involving wages (presumably to prevent cities setting a minimum wage), and benefits (for same-sex partners) and other regulations that would go beyond state regulations.   In other words, the state is taking away its cities' autonomy to be better than their state government.  These conservatives are just not going to let that happen.  No, siree !!

The backlash from corporations has already begun, just as is being threatened in Georgia if Gov. Deal signs the "religious freedom" bill.   But it's a little late in N.C.   Signed, sealed, and delivered into law.

Ralph