North Carolina and Governor Pat McCrory are being hit hard by opposition to the anti-LGBT bill which prohibits transgender people from using appropriate restrooms, repealed all local LGBT ordinances and prohibits any from being enacted.
The updates are coming in so frequently that we rounded up the most recent ones.
In case you missed our recent updates, the Obama administration may cut off federal aid to the state over the bill, furniture magnate Mitchell Gold blasted the bill on CNBC.
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ACLU. Petition to repeal HB2: “This law is bad for North Carolina and for this country. Major corporations that provide jobs and revenue to the state are condemning this attack on LGBT people. This law jeopardizes the $4.5 billion in federal funding North Carolina receives for education. But the real cost is the safety, dignity, and lives of North Carolina’s LGBT people, especially transgender people. This state-sponsored bullying and discrimination of LGBT people is completely out of touch with North Carolina and American values.”
RELATED: Atlanta to NBA: Take All-Star Game from Anti-LGBT North Carolina and Give It to Us
WASHINGTON D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser issues executive order banning official travel to North Carolina:
I signed an order banning travel to NC for DC Gov employes. We stand w/ the LGBTQ community & against discrimination pic.twitter.com/HmJnKMuz6O
— Mayor Muriel Bowser (@MayorBowser) April 1, 2016
MINNESOTA. Governor Mark Dayton bans official travel to North Carolina: “Dayton sent a letter Saturday to all state employees, directing them to stop all nonessential travel to North Carolina for conferences or other official state business until further notice. The Democratic governor says North Carolina’s new law “violates the values and the laws” of Minnesota.”
HATERS. The Keep NC Safe Coalition displays mugshots of transgender people to, I guess, prove all trans people are predators and criminals: “This morning haters from the Keep NC Safe Coalition unfurled a massive banner bearing the alleged mugshots of trans people as they faced down chanting LGBT activists across a downtown Asheville street. See video below. It’s not yet known what crimes the depicted trans people are accused of having committed, but the message, obviously, is that since some trans people have been arrested in the past, none deserve the civil rights already guaranteed to the followers of White Jesus, not one of whom has ever been arrested.”
Nesbitt displays mugshots of Trans folks. "Whites, blacks, any society has its perverts" #hb2 #avlnewz pic.twitter.com/rsV41b30SU
— Max Cooper (@MaxCooperAVL) April 2, 2016
AND THE GOOD ONES.
Anti #hb2 crowd. #avlnews pic.twitter.com/gashYSN26S
— Max Cooper (@MaxCooperAVL) April 2, 2016
RELATED: Rachel Maddow: Anti-LGBT North Carolina About to ‘Get Their Pants Sued Off’
10 MORE COMPANIES. Pressure mounts on North Carolina: “The Human Rights Campaign and Equality North Carolina released Friday the names of another 10 company executives that have signed on to a letter criticizing the law and seeking its repeal, bringing the number of names to more than 120. New executives include those from Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Qualcomm and EMC Corp…Separately Friday, the venture capital arm of Google’s parent corporation confirmed it won’t invest in North Carolina startup businesses while the law is in place. GV spokeswoman Jodi Olson cited written comments by CEO Bill Maris in which he asked his firm’s partners to flag possible North Carolina investments because he’s “not comfortable deploying dollars into startups there until the voters there fix this.” The move was first reported by Re/code, a tech-focused news site.”
PEPSICO. SENDS LETTER: “Completely inconsistent”: “Pepsico CEO Indra Nooyi sent a letter to McCrory calling on him to consider repealing the measure when the General Assembly convenes in Raleigh later this month. Nooyi said she was taken aback by the law as well as McCrory’s decision to sign it so quickly. She said the measure is “completely inconsistent” with the way her company treats its workers, and that it undermines efforts to advance North Carolina’s long-term interests. Pepsi-Cola traces its roots to North Carolina, where it was created in the late 1890s by New Bern pharmacist Caleb Bradham.”
FILM, TV. Production companies pile on: “Lionsgate and the A+E network say they won’t film TV shows and movies in North Carolina if the state doesn’t repeal its new LGBT law. Along with Fox, Miramax and The Weinstein Company, the entertainment producers have voiced opposition to House Bill 2, which replaces local ordinances with a statewide nondiscrimination law that doesn’t include sexual orientation and gender identity as protected categories. A production coordinator for Lionsgate told the Associated Press that the company is canceling plans to shoot a comedy show in Charlotte and will instead film in Canada. The production would have involved hiring about 100 workers in North Carolina.”
NO MUSICALS FOR YOU. Broadway composer Stephen Schwartz, who wrote “Pippin,” “Godspell,” “Wicked,” “Working” and “The Magic Show,” is denying the state any productions of his works:
“To my fellow theatre writers and producers: As you no doubt know, the state of North Carolina has recently passed a reprehensible and discriminatory law. I feel that it is very important that any state that passes such a law suffer economic and cultural consequences, partly because it is deserved and partly to discourage other states from following suit.
“Therefore, I and my collaborators are acting to deny the right to any theatre or organization based in North Carolina to produce any of our shows. We have informed our licensing organizations and touring producers of this, and I’m happy to say have met with compliance and approval from them.
“In the 1970’s, I, along with many other writers and artists, participated in a similar action against apartheid in South Africa, and as you know, this eventually proved to be very effective.
“If you are in agreement, you may want to join me in refusing to license our properties to, or permit productions of our work by, theaters and organizations in North Carolina until this heinous legislation is repealed.
“Thank you for considering this.”
RELATED: North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper Won’t Defend ‘Discriminatory’ Anti-LGBT Law: WATCH
COLLEGE STUDENT EDUCATORS INT’L. ACPA moves Student Affairs Assessment Institute from North Carolina to Maryland: “After discussion with the Assessment Institute team, we authorized the staff leadership to pursue a move to a different state, even if it involved a financial loss so that the Institute can be held in a place where all participants can feel safe, welcomed, and included.”
“As artists, we strive to create books that promote acceptance of all people regardless of race, religion, or gender identity. We will continue to do so; however, we cannot and will not support a state government that promotes discrimination. Each one of us will have to consider our participation in conferences and festivals in North Carolina while this law is in place. But you have our word that we will never abandon our thousands and thousands of readers in North Carolina. We stand with those who share our guiding principles and fundamental beliefs of equality, inclusion, and fair treatment. Thus, we will continue to visit your schools and libraries. We will spread kindness and inspire compassion and hope, as we believe books, in their best moments, always have and always will.”
MCRORY LIES. HRC releases video exposing governor’s lies on HB2:
AMERICAN SOCIETY OF INTERIOR DESIGNERS. Dismayed:
The American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) is dismayed with the North Carolina legislature and governor’s recent actions to enact discriminatory legislation (HB 2) that overturns protections for LGBT people and sanctions discrimination across the state. As an organization that represents more than 26,000 interior design professionals, manufacturers, and industry representatives, ASID believes that laws such as HB 2 are unacceptable and counterproductive for business and the profession at large.
A thriving business environment depends on inclusive practices that welcome all who want to participate. In fact, North Carolina prides itself on being one of the top states in the nation in which to conduct business and to establish businesses. Yet HB 2 sends a clear and harmful message to the contrary. As a result, numerous businesses and consumers are calling for boycotts of North Carolina’s economy and, more specifically, the upcoming biannual High Point Market; one of the largest income producers for the state of North Carolina.
Members of the design community have not only joined these calls, but also are forgoing participation at High Point Market—at a cost to their businesses. ASID commends their actions in the name of pressuring the governor and legislature to rescind HB 2.
Similarly, ASID supports those individuals attending Market who wish to champion the many manufacturers and businesses speaking out against the new law. Laws such as HB 2 that permit discrimination are regressive and place individuals at risk of being denied service, lodging, employment, and business in general. Therefore, ASID encourages anyone attending Market to ask hard questions of the organizations they do business with and to consider carefully, and morally, where they spend their money.
ASID rejects discrimination of any kind and, as the voice of the profession, we expect public policies to support and protect—not jeopardize—our members, the profession, and the industry. While ASID will continue with our scheduled programming at Market, which includes a session on The Impact of Government Laws and Regulations on Your Design Business, we will evaluate future interactions and business opportunities in North Carolina as well as other states with similar laws. Our vigilance on this matter will not cease, and we strongly urge all elected officials to move without delay to repeal discriminatory laws like HB 2.
ASID invites interior designers to join their voices with others from across the country. Text “One Voice’ to 52886 to stay updated and engaged on this and other important issues affecting interior designers and the profession.
