The sides were drawn at the late February City Council meeting in Charlotte, N.C., that lead to the vote 7-4 in favor of the new non-discrimination law. Only a year prior, a similar law had failed by a slim margin. But the progressive community had been in motion, fighting with determination to expand LGBTQ rights.
Charlotte is one of the largest cities in the southeast, a center for finance capital in the South. A majority of city residents are African American, Latino and Asian.
Activists projected that the passage of the non-discrimination ordinance there could spark the coalitions necessary to go after bigoted laws in 29 other states that allow LGBTQ people to be fired from their workplaces.
The bigots mobilized in return. Gov. McCrory called an emergency session of the state’s General Assembly to pass a new piece of reactionary legislation called HB2. It has been widely rejected by people across the state and the country.
The bill makes it much more difficult to file a successful claim on the basis of race/nationality, sex, disability, etc. In addition, it prevents municipalities from passing their own higher minimum wage laws.
The forces targeted by this brazen attack have fought back with unity. LGBTQ rights activists have united with the anti-racist Moral Mondays Coalition, along with organizers in the fight for a $15-an-hour minimum wage. The struggle has escalated into a broad confrontation between those who have a progressive vision for the state and those who want to turn back the clock.
Attacks and counter-attacks
The right wing is pursuing their bigoted agenda in other states with the passage of other “hate bills.” The governor of Tennessee signed into law HB 1840, attacking LGBTQ people seeking mental health services. This horrendous law states that no one “shall be required to counsel or serve a client as to goals, outcomes, or behaviors that conflict with a sincerely held religious belief.” In other words, LGBTQ people are not entitled to dignity in health care.
Interestingly, there has never been a complaint filed with Tennessee Counseling Association, the Licensing Board or any other entity. It is bigotry completely made up to incite division.
A Mississippi state law passed in April allows individuals, religious organizations and businesses to basically discriminate at-will against LGBTQ people, and allows state clerks to recuse themselves from providing marriage licences to same-sex couples.
The backlash to progress is nothing new. It is reminiscent of the 1978 Briggs Initiative in California and the Save Our Children campaign led by infamous anti-LGBTQ bigot Anita Bryant in Miami-Dade in 1977, who spread fear and hate to counter growing LGBTQ visibility. As it happened then, the bigots’ attacks now will awaken new waves of struggle.
Sowing the seeds of fear is the oldest trick in the ruling class’ arsenal, but it has been defeated many times before. From Charlotte to every city and town across the country, it is time to organize!
