A year after HB2 repeal, LGBT North Carolinians "do not know who their champions are"
RALEIGH -- It has been exactly one year since the N.C. General Assembly passed its compromise to repeal House Bill 2, commonly referred to as the "bathroom bill," which required residents to use the bathroom in public facilities that matched the gender on their birth certificate.
The partial repeal bill — House Bill 142 — was passed in a single day, after lawmakers had negotiated throughout the week with Gov. Roy Cooper. The days leading up to the repeal were emotional for some lawmakers, including Rep. Deb Butler, a New Hanover County Democrat who was just weeks into her appointment and at that time one of only two openly LGBT members of the General Assembly.
"I remember thinking this was a fine welcome," Butler said this week. "It was trial by fire for me as a freshman legislator. I had to get over any other apprehension I had about speaking on the floor and speaking to the press."
Butler and Rep. Cecil Brockman, a Guilford County Democrat — who is bisexual — both gave floor speeches on March 30, 2017, opposing the repeal. Brockman noted that no LGBTQ residents or activists were involved in crafting the compromise bill. Butler at that time noted that "this is so much bigger than basketball," referencing the fact that when the bill was crafted, North Carolina was under a deadline from the NCAA to repeal HB2 or be out of the running to host future sports championship games.
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