North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory told Charlotte city councilors that he would support an attempt to nullify a proposed nondiscrimination law. McCrory was mayor of Charlotte for 14 years and a city councilor for six years.
A similar ordinance was defeated last year on a 6-5 vote, but this year the measure has the support to pass. Mayor Jennifer Roberts also supports the bill. The ordinance would provide public accommodation protections for LGBT people.
“It is not only the citizens of Charlotte that will be impacted by changing basic restroom and locker room norms but also citizens from across our state and nation who visit and work in Charlotte,” McCrory said in an email to the council’s two Republican opponents to the measure. “This shift in policy could also create major public safety issues by putting citizens in possible danger from deviant actions by individuals taking improper advantage of a bad policy.”
“Also, this action of allowing a person with male anatomy, for example, to use a female restroom or locker room will most likely cause immediate State legislative intervention which I would support as governor,” he continued according to The Charlotte Observer.
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Council member Al Austin, a Democrat who supports the ordinance, told the Observer, “We are trying to show the world that Charlotte is an inclusive place. We can’t control what Raleigh thinks and what Raleigh does.”
Austin added that he believes McCrory already has draft legislation ready to overturn the city’s vote. The council will vote on the proposed law this evening; it is expected to pass.
