Tag: HB2

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NBA Announces No 2017 All-Star Game For North Carolina Due To Anti-LGBT Law HB2

Yahoo Sports’ The Vertical is reporting that the NBA will soon announce that the 2017 All-Stars game will be pulled from North Carolina over it’s hateful anti-LGBT legislation, HB2.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver had threatened to move All-Star Weekend out of Charlotte unless a discriminatory North Carolina law aimed at the state’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community was changed – and time to do so has run out because of the logistics and planning the NBA needs to run its marquee midseason event, league sources said.

The issue is centered on North Carolina’s House Bill 2, a law that mandates transgender people use public restrooms corresponding to the sex listed on their birth certificates. The law also omits LGBT people from North Carolina’s anti-discrimination protections, forbids local governments from widening LGBT protections and excludes all forms of workplace discrimination lawsuits from North Carolina state courts.

New Orleans, which last hosted an All-Star game in 2014, now looks to be the leading contender to host the event.

Here’s the official notice from the NBA:

The NBA has decided to relocate the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte with the hope of rescheduling for 2019. Since March, when North Carolina enacted HB2 and the issue of legal protections for the LGBT community in Charlotte became prominent, the NBA and the Charlotte Hornets have been working diligently to foster constructive dialogue and try to effect positive change. We have been guided in these discussions by the long-standing core values of our league. These include not only diversity, inclusion, fairness and respect for others but also the willingness to listen and consider opposing points of view.

Our week-long schedule of All-Star events and activities is intended to be a global celebration of basketball, our league, and the values for which we stand, and to bring together all members of the NBA community – current and former players, league and team officials, business partners, and fans. While we recognize that the NBA cannot choose the law in every city, state, and country in which we do business, we do not believe we can successfully host our All-Star festivities in Charlotte in the climate created by HB2.

We are particularly mindful of the impact of this decision on our fans in North Carolina, who are among the most passionate in our league. It is also important to stress that the City of Charlotte and the Hornets organization have sought to provide an inclusive environment and that the Hornets will continue to ensure that all patrons – including members of the LGBT community – feel welcome while attending games and events in their arena.

We look forward to re-starting plans for our All-Star festivities in Charlotte for 2019 provided there is an appropriate resolution to this matter. The NBA will make an announcement on the new location of the 2017 NBA All-Star Game in the coming weeks.

The Human Rights Campaign chimes in with praise:

Today the NBA and Commissioner Silver sent a clear message that they won’t stand for discrimination against LGBTQ employees, players or fans.

The NBA repeatedly warned state lawmakers that their hateful HB2 law created an inhospitable environment for their 2017 All-Star Game and other events.

Nevertheless, Governor McCrory, Senator Berger and Speaker Moore doubled down on HB2 and refused to undo their discriminatory and costly error in judgment.

Every day that HB2 remains on the books, people across North Carolina are at risk of real harm.

We appreciate the leadership of the NBA in standing up for equality and call once again on lawmakers to repeal this vile HB2 law.

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North Carolina Legislature Adjourns For The Year Without Fixing Anti-LGBT HB2

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory

The North Carolina legislature adjourned last night without making any meaningful changes to the state’s controversial anti-LGBT law, HB2.

Even with the NBA threatening to move the 2017 All-Star game, and LGBT activists railing against the hateful legislation, the state lawmakers barely did a drive-by tweak to the law.

From the Charlotte Obaserver:

The two chambers also late Friday agreed to make a change to the law known as House Bill 2 as requested by McCrory, who wanted to have restored the right of workers to sue for employment discrimination using a state law. It cleared the House by a vote of 85-15 and 27-14 in the Senate and now goes to McCrory. His office didn’t immediately respond the action.

But the change to House Bill 2, approved in March and the subject of criticism nationally, didn’t repeal provisions that limited non-discrimination rules for lesbians, gays, bisexual and transgender people and directed which restroom transgender people can use.

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Charles Barkley: “We Need To Move The All-Star Game”

Charles Barkley, NBA legend and current TNT analyst, says the NBA will need to relocate the All-Star Game out of North Carolina next year because of the anti-LGBT law HB2.

During an appearance on the “The Dan Patrick Show,” Barkley was asked, “Will you consider boycotting the All-Star Game?”

“Yes,” Barkley responded. “I told my boss, I don’t want to act like I’m jumping on a sword, but I’ve talked to Adam Silver, we need to move the All-Star Game,” he said, speaking of the NBA Commissioner.

“I hope they don’t put me in a situation where I have to boycott the All-Star Game. We need to move the All-Star Game.”

North Carolina has already suffered economic losses totally in the millions thanks to the controversial legislation.

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Maroon 5 To North Carolina: No Concerts For You

Maroon 5 joins an extremely long list of entertainment acts to cancel dates in North Carolina over the recently passed anti-LGBT legislation HB2. Both Charlotte and Raleigh will lose dates on the band’s schedule.

From the band’s official website:

We have announced that we will be canceling our upcoming shows in Charlotte and Raleigh, North Carolina because of the recent passage of the HB2 legislation.

This was a difficult decision for us to make as a band. We don’t want to penalize our fans in North Carolina by not performing for them, but in the end it comes down to what we feel is morally right.

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North Carolina Gov. McCrory Angry 4th Circuit Appeals Court Denies Rehearing

North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory issued this angry statement in response to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals denial to rehear a case regarding transgender rights decided in April.

“School systems throughout our nation should be allowed to make sensible accommodations for students whose gender identity conflicts with their own physical anatomy. Yet the extreme Obama courts and administration deny this common sense flexibility at the expense of privacy for millions of boys and girls in our schools’ restrooms, locker room and shower facilities.

“It’s unfortunate that our attorney general Roy Cooper didn’t join us to pretect the expectation of privacy for our children.

“As Judge Niemeyer notes in his opinion, ‘…they can override these provisions by redefining sex to mean how any given person identifies himself or her self at any given time, thereby, of necessity, denying all affected persons the dignity and freedom of bodily privacy.’

“He went on to say, and I agree, ‘…the momentous nature of this issue deserves an open road to the Supreme Court to seek the Court’s controlling construction of Title IX for national application.’

“Alternatively, the U.S. Congress could take action to clarify the scope of federal anti-discrimination laws so there is consistent application across our country.”

The original case was brought by a transgender student, Gavin Grimm, against the Gloucester County School Board in Virginia, which enacted a policy restricting students to restrooms aligned with their “biological gender.,” and not their gender identity.

Grimm said in a statement, “Now that the Fourth Circuit’s decision is final, I hope my school board will finally do the right thing and let me go back to using the boys’ restroom. Transgender kids should not have to sue their own school boards just for the ability to use the same restrooms as everyone else.”

Because the ruling was issued by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, and North Carolina is subject to rulings of the 4th, North Carolina may well see it’s hateful HB2 go down.

I fully expect this case to head to the U.S. Supreme Court.

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North Carolina: Crowd Goes Wild As Gay Couple Renew Marriage Vows At Edward Sharpe Concert

Rather than cancel their scheduled concert in North Carolina, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros took a different approach to protesting North Carolina’s HB 2,

Frontman Alex Ebert told the crowd of 2,500 that although he had to miss his friends’ wedding, wouldn’t it be a good idea if he could help them renew those vows in front of the audience?

He then invited those friends, Dan Mathews and Jack Ryan, on stage to do just that.

And the crowd goes wild!

Ebert told Rolling Stone,  “HB2 was passed by an immoral minority – North Carolina has many thriving, creative, modern communities. We were tempted to cancel the show, but decided at the last minute to rally the crowd instead by renewing the vows of our good friends onstage.”

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San Francisco 49ers Say North Carolina’s HB2 is “Is Bad For Our Employees, Bad For Our Fans, And Bad For Business”

In North Carolina for the NFL owner’s meeting, San Francisco 49ers CEO Jed York did not miss his opportunity to address the recent anti-LGBT legislation passed there.

York met with LGBT advocates, transgender North Carolinians and made a $75,000 donation to Equality North Carolina Foundation to help repeal HB2.

The 49ers CEO also released this statement:

“The San Francisco 49ers are deeply concerned about North Carolina’s recently-enacted House Bill 2, which overturned protections for LGBT people and sanctioned discrimination across the state. HB 2 does not reflect the values of our organization, of our country, or the majority of North Carolinians.

“We firmly believe that discriminatory laws such as HB 2 are bad for our employees, bad for our fans, and bad for business. We believe that HB 2 will make it far more challenging for businesses across the state to recruit and retain the nation’s best and brightest workers and attract the most talented students from across the country. It will also diminish the state’s draw as a destination for sporting events, tourism and conventions, and new business activity.

“Discrimination is wrong, and we believe it has no place in North Carolina or anywhere in our country. As an organization that prides ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming to all, we strongly urge Governor Pat McCrory and the leadership of North Carolina’s legislature to repeal this law in the current legislative session.”

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North Carolina: Ironman Athletes Choose Other States Due To HB2

Competitive sports organization Ironman reports that about 200 of their athletes have chosen to transfer to races in states other than North Carolina due to the controversial, anti-LGBT legislation, HB2.

Ironman had reached out to it’s registrants via email, giving the athletes until May 9th to change switch to another North American race.

From the Charlotte Observer:

“As many of you are aware, the state of North Carolina recently approved a bill that has raised the concerns of many, including us at Ironman,” the organization said in an email to registrants. “While we plan to move forward with our races in Raleigh and Wilmington, we recognize that some of you may no longer wish to race in North Carolina.”

“Ironman is an all-inclusive sport and we will continue to always provide an arena for all individuals to pursue their goals and dreams of becoming an Ironman,” the organization said in the email.

HB2 sets a statewide class of nondiscrimination that does not include sexual orientation or gender identity. It also requires people in government facilities to use the bathroom that corresponds with the gender on their birth certificate. The bill, which overturned a Charlotte non-discrimination ordinance, was signed into law March 23.

Earlier this month, the Justice Department sent state leaders a letter saying that HB2 violates the Civil Rights Act and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 – a finding that could jeopardize billions in federal education funding. Those laws ban employment discrimination and discrimination in education based on sex.

A number of major businesses have come out against the law, including Bank of America, Lowe’s and American Airlines. PayPal scrapped an expansion in Charlotte, musicians have canceled concerts and conventions have pulled out of the state.

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North Carolina Lawmakers Introduce Bill To Replace HB2 With Comprehensive LGBT Protections

The Human Rights Campaign, via press release, shares the news that four North Carolina state Representatives introduced legislation today that would repeal anti-LGBT law HB2 and provide comprehensive LGBT non-discrimination protections.

Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, commended North Carolina Representatives Chris Sgro, Pricey Harrison, Susan Fisher, and Kelly Alexander for introducing a comprehensive LGBT non-discrimination bill in the North Carolina General Assembly. This bill would be a companion to HB 946, sponsored by Representatives Jackson, Meyer, Hamilton and G. Martin, and SB 784, sponsored by Senators Van Duyn, J. Jackson, and Woodard.

“We have always known, and come to understand even more urgently during the HB2 debate, the incredible need for non-discrimination protections for LGBT and other North Carolinians,” said Representative Chris Sgro, one of the sponsors of the legislation. “This bill, along with the repeal of HB2, is the important next step that this General Assembly and Governor McCrory must take in order to make North Carolina a true state of equality and help heal our national reputation.”

The non-discrimination bill introduced today comes after Gov. Pat McCrory said on Fox News’ “On the Record” that he did not believe that companies should be able to fire someone because of who they are or whom they love. Not only does North Carolina lack such explicit statewide LGBT non-discrimination protections, but among other things, HB2 also eliminated the ability of North Carolinians to be able to sue if they experienced discrimination in the workforce, including on the basis of race, religion, national origin and sex.

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North Carolina Attorney General To Governor On HB2: “Enough Is Enough”

North Carolina Attorney General Roy Moore, currently running to unseat Gov. Pat McCrory, put out this message today asking the governor to lead the charge on repealing the state’s anti-LGBT law, HB2.

Text of the video:

Since Governor McCrory signed House Bill 2 into law just weeks ago, there has been a real and devastating impact on North Carolina’s economy and reputation. Already we have lost thousands of jobs and tens of millions of dollars in economic activity.

And now the governor is pouring gas on the fire that he lit and putting billions in education funding on the line. Instead of doing what’s right for our state, he’s doubling down on what he knows he did wrong. Enough is enough.

For decades, North Carolina has been a beacon in the south with great universities, technology and forward thinking leaders. But now, the governor is putting all that and more at risk with his partisan gamesmanship.

Governor, for the sake of our schools, our children, our economy, and our good name, set the politics aside and undo this discriminatory law now.

Although he was leading in the gubernatorial race before HB2, since signing the legislation into law McCrory has consistently trailed Moore in the polls.