Memo: North Carolina Executive Order is Not Enough, Anti-LGBT and Anti-Worker Law Should be Repealed

Today, North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory responded to an overwhelming backlash against House Bill 2 from his constituents, the civil rights community, the faith community, and the business sector and signed an executive order that attempts to backpedal on this abhorrent law.

But it’s simply not enough. The harm done by HB2 to North Carolinians cannot be rectified by mere tweaks to this anti-LGBT and anti-worker law. HB 2 must be repealed outright.  

House Bill 2 is part of a broader assault on the constitutional rights of communities across North Carolina to equal protection under the law.

Since the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act in 2013, removing North Carolina voting changes from federal oversight, the state has been a leader in pushing through laws intended to disenfranchise minority voters.

In North Carolina, tens of thousands of voters have been disenfranchised or burdened by voter suppression laws and the inconsistent implementation of them across the state.

Given these assaults on voting rights, coupled with North Carolina’s failures to pass the Medicaid Expansion under the Affordable Care Act or a long-overdue minimum wage increase, the passage of discriminatory House Bill 2 paints a troubling picture of a state legislature that is attacking the rights of vulnerable communities from all angles.

For centuries, those seeking to deny civil rights to others have used the same religious freedom arguments we hear today.

Freedom of religion is a fundamental American value. That’s why religious freedom is so strongly protected in the First Amendment and the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). Many states have religious freedom laws that mirror the federal RFRA. But more recent religious freedom bills are going beyond the intended shield of protection for religious minorities and using religion as a sword to attack minority communities. As more and more bills arise across the country aimed at singling out LGBT people for harm under the guise of religion, it’s important to understand the long and ruinous history of this deplorable tactic.

Dating back to the times of slavery, religious exemption rhetoric and legal arguments have been used to stymy civil rights to many communities. Claims of religious freedom have been used to justify support for segregation and discrimination against immigrants, women, and people with disabilities, and have even endangered religious minorities that the original Religious Freedom Restoration Act set out to protect.

A new report out from The Leadership Conference Education Fund, Striking a Balance, details the history behind the legal and rhetorical religious arguments used to subvert the rights of minority communities and provides groundbreaking insight into the ways these arguments are still being used today.

House Bill 2 is a dangerous step in the wrong direction for North Carolina. Tinkering with the language to appear more moderate is insufficient to protect North Carolinians. HB 2 must be repealed immediately.

For more information, please contact Scott Simpson with The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights ([email protected]/202-466-2061).