Democratic presidential candidates
Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have condemned passage of an
anti-gay law in North Carolina.
Last week, North Carolina lawmakers
approved and Republican Governor Pat McCrory signed into law House
Bill 2, which bars any city, town or municipality from enacting
measures that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or
gender identity. The law also makes North Carolina the first state
in the nation to prohibit students in public schools from using the
bathroom that does not conform to their gender at birth. Similar
attempts in South Dakota and Tennessee failed this legislative
session.
“It's time to end discrimination
based on sexual orientation and gender identity,” Sanders tweeted
on Thursday. “This law has no place in America.”
“LGBT people should be protected from
discrimination under the law – period,” Clinton said in a tweet
linked to a story on the law's passage.
The legislation was a response to
passage of an LGBT protections ordinance in Charlotte set to take
effect on April 1. State lawmakers held a one-day special session at
a cost of $42,000 to pass House Bill 2.