Republican Governor Pat McCrory has been issued a letter by the US Justice Department insisting North Carolina repeal HB2 which banned transgender people from using certain bathrooms.

 
Yesterday Pat McCrory, the Republican Governor of North Carolina, received a letter from the US Justice Department requesting the state to back down on House Bill Two (HB2), the bill which forces transgender people to use the bathroom which corresponds with their ‘biological sex’. The letter from the Justice Department demands a response by close of business on Monday, giving Mr. McCrory five only five days to reply.

HB2 came under criticism from LGBT advocates including high profile companies and members of the entertainment industry for its regressive nature, causing the Governor to clarify the reach of the law in a public video announcement.

These clarifications, however, have not satisfied the Justice Department who might take legal action against the Governor as well as denying North Carolina from millions of dollars of federal funding. The letter contends that North Carolina’s HB2 breaches federal civil rights protections that transgender people are afforded, on the grounds that they are being discriminated against due to their sex.

Citing the civil rights act the letter to Pat McCrory states:

Access to sex-segregated restrooms and other workplace facilities consistent with gender identity is a term, condition, or privilege of employment. Denying such access to transgender individuals, who’s gender identity is different from their gender assigned at birth, while affording it to similarly situated non-transgender employees, violates Title VII.

With only five days to reply to the Justice Department and with potentially millions of dollars of federal funding at risk, the world looks to North Carolina to see what the state will do next.

Do you think the Governor will comply with the US Justice Department? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.