The Charlotte City Council tried negotiating with the leadership of the General Assembly to find a way to lessen the damages that are happening to the state’s economy, particularly Charlotte, which has been hard hit. The General Assembly refused to budge on HB 2, and the council voted to uphold its anti-discrimination ordinance so it has come to a stand-off.

In the month since NC HB 2 was passed, the outcry from businesses, churches, and many other organizations, the Governor and the leadership of the NC General Assembly have stonewalled all the opposition to the bill. They claimed that the bill was misinterpreted, manipulated by the media, and used by the opposition to further their agenda. The Governor appeared on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” even though he had avoided all questions from local media for weeks. According to him, it was all a big misunderstanding, and all that was required was a little dialogue to smooth out the rough spots. In spite of the fact that the bill was passed and signed within 12 hours with little opportunity for discussion even within the General Assembly, he only called for more discussion. They have tried to frame the debate as between Christians and secularists, but most Christians object.

A sell-out crowd at the NC Policy Watch’s regular “Crucial Conversations” Tuesday heard a panel discussion on the law passed by the General Assembly last week (HB2) that rescinded the anti-discrimination ordinance recently amended by the Charlotte City Council. The new law applies to all public entities in the state (not just Charlotte) and is effective immediately.