We asked JMU students how they feel about the new bill in North Carolina

Deemed the most anti-LGBT+ bill in the United States, the “Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act” recently passed in North Carolina has been making airwaves and provoking lots of reactions during the last few days. This act overrides all local ordinances concerning wages, employment and public accommodations, as a reaction to the city of Charlotte passing ordinances that expanded protections for the LGBT+ community. It states who cannot be discriminated against, and municipalities cannot provide their own protections for groups not listed. This predominantly affects the LGBT+ community, but also veterans. The bill also forces people to use the facility that matches their birth certificate. However, changing the gender on your birth certificate requires undergoing sex-reassignment surgery which not all transgender individuals can afford, or even want to do.

The people have spoken very loudly in response. The North Carolina Attorney General has refused to defend it, organizations and corporations like eBay and the NFL have detested the new bill, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has even banned all state-sponsored and state-funded trips to North Carolina in response to the passing of the bill. Despite the obvious disliking of the bill, protecting the rights of some of the most vulnerable of his people does not seem to be on Governor Pat McCrory’s mind. To him, protecting these people’s rights is just “political correctness gone amok”.

I am not here to defend or argue against political correctness, but is protecting the rights of individuals who are disadvantaged and not treating them equally under the law the same as these other extremities?

But what do students at JMU think? We interviewed students asking them how they feel about the controversial new legislation:

Lucas Manweiler, 19

“I think it’s wrong for Republican legislature to continuously to try and take things away from a group of people who have done nothing wrong. I think it is not necessarily as black and white of a topic, that they can just get rid of all of it. It’s wrong they can just take rights away from people around the state, even if a town or city decides to make it’s legislation. [And the way they got the bill passed] shows they don’t care what the people want.”

Kelly Plath, 18

“I don’t support the bill. I think it’s wrong to be discriminated against for something you can’t change that’s a part of who you are. It is important to protect these people, and make sure they have as equal of an opportunity as everyone else. People should be able to do whatever makes them the most comfortable, people shouldn’t be forced to use a certain facility if they don’t identify with that gender. As a North Carolinian, it feels like instead of taking a step forward we took a step back, and took away the rights of a certain groups of people. We should be moving more towards accepting people rather than restricting them.”

Patrick Carroll, 19

“I’m a conservative, and I’m against the bill. From the cis-gender’s standpoint, if you were born a female and see you someone is transgender in the role of a male in the same bathroom, it would cause more discomfort for that female than the other way around. As for the protections in the workplace, however, I believe a private business can set their own rules. In the future though, it’s eventually all going to be equal in the government.”

It is my personal opinion, that no, defending people’s inalienable rights has nothing to do with being “overly sensitive”, and it certainly is not something out of “1984”. Not even close. In fact, it is in direct violation of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights and our own Constitution. Protecting  groups of people from discrimination is not infringing on anyone’s freedoms. But to force a transgender individual to use the inappropriate facilities where they are vulnerable to bullying and assault IS taking someone’s right away. To allow someone who is gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or another identity to be fired from their job because of such IS taking someone’s right away. Taking away (or failing to provide) someone’s fundamental human and civil rights is more threatening to society than a cis-gender individual feeling “uncomfortable” that a transgender individual wants to use the same restroom as them to do what both come to do, use the restroom. If he thinks protecting the rights of vulnerable individuals who are susceptible to discrimination and prejudice is just “political correctness gone amok”, then he has no place in being a Governor in these United States.

Voice your own opinion on our online poll, and see what others have said too: