Kat Kelly – In March of 2016, it became a hot topic when Governor Pat McCrory signed North Carolina House Bill 2 into law.
While the conservative leadership of North Carolina claims that this bill is designed to protect North Carolina’s women and children, it is hard to see that might be the case when the bill is part of legislation that overturns local protections for LGBT citizens, including a Charlotte ruling that was passed earlier in the year that prevented discrimination against LGBT people in the city of Charlotte.
So, tell me again how this bill protects women and children? Have there been multiple known cases of predatory men entering ladies’ rooms across the state? If this was an issue, were bystanders just watching these men enter restrooms where they clearly do not match the gender on the door signs? Apparently, it wasn’t an issue.
What an absurd misrepresentation of the spirit of this bill.
While, as of the time of this writing, Governor McCrory continues to defend this bill, his state is losing billions of dollars in conferences, businesses, entertainment events, and more. Even other government entities have enacted travel bans to his state due to HB2. And most recently, European countries…yes, countries…have scaled back travel to the state.
I mean no disrespect to this clearly misguided and uneducated governor when I ask, dude, what gives? If you really wanted to protect people in your state, why does HB2 overturn protections afforded in Charlotte? Your protective argument would be much more solid if this bill didn’t actually remove protections from entire groups of people.
As a woman and as a mother, I want nothing more than to ensure that myself and my family stay as safe as possible. That being said, HB2 actually creates a more dangerous environment in North Carolina public restrooms.
But, how?
See, a trans person is not necessarily defined by the gender on their birth certificate. What does this all mean? Well, by Governor McCrory’s standard, a person born as a female should use the women’s restroom. Let’s not forget that this person could have transitioned to male and show all outward signs of being a “man.” McCrory’s “woman” may have facial hair, muscles, bulk, a deep voice, and those are just the things we can see on the outside. Thanks to McCrory’s ruling, my next stop in North Carolina could ensure that I am sharing a restroom with this fellow.
But, I’m not worried about this fellow. What I know about him is that he worked hard to get where he is in life. Most likely he’s gone through a lot of emotional torture on his journey, and has spent a great deal of time soul-searching. As part of his transition, he’s also likely had a great deal of counseling. This fellow is not a predator.
Under this ruling, the door is now opened for true predators to exploit the trans community by falsely claiming to be part of this community. Prior to the introduction of this bill, very few people gave any thought to the woman in the stall next to them. But now, thanks to this bill, heterosexual male predators can pray on innocent victims by exploiting the very essence of this bill. Thanks to North Carolina HB2, men with ill intent who outwardly present as male, can claim to have been born female in order to gain access to women’s locker rooms and restrooms.
What a brilliant way to gain access to potential new victims. And what a short-sighted, narrow-minded ruling to not understand that through this legislation you are actually putting more women and children at risk. Of course, this is just one small example of the dangers that HB2 creates. I could go on with a few more tangental words, but I won’t for now.
It is my hope that this article becomes obsolete and merely a forever-digitally-preserved reminder of backwards, hateful legislation that was once part of the fabric of southern, antiquated politics.
In the meantime, I will not spend a dime in North Carolina and I’ll try to pass through without stopping at any roadside restrooms.
Kat Kelly is the founder of Vexteo and believes in humanity.
