North Carolina lawmakers have announced a deal to repeal HB2, the state’s transphobic bathroom bill—but hold your cheers. There’s at least as much bad news as good news in this deal, introduced hours before the deadline the NCAA had given the state to shape up or lose the possibility of hosting any NCAA events through 2022. How bad? This bad:
The compromise, reached with Democratic Governor Roy Cooper and set to go before the legislature for a vote Thursday morning, would still ban local municipalities, schools and others from regulating bathroom access.
It would also effectively forbid cities from offering their own job and restroom protections to vulnerable groups for nearly four years.
LGBT organizations and the ACLU are not impressed.
“This proposal is a train wreck that would double down on anti-LGBTQ discrimination. North Carolinians want a clean repeal of HB2, and we urge our allies not to sell us out,” said Chris Sgro, Equality NC Executive Director. “Those who stand for equality and with LGBTQ people are standing strong against these antics. We’ve got less than 24 hours before the NCAA deadline. There is no time to waste – our leaders must fight for what’s right, and that is full repeal.”
The NCAA and other organizations that had been boycotting the state over HB2 should make clear that this is not an acceptable answer.