Boston joins San Fran and NYC in boycott of North Carolina
The city of Boston has joined the likes of San Francisco and New York City in stopping its workers from travelling to the state of North Carolina.
Last week the state of North Carolina passed a law which voids all local ordinances protecting LGBT rights, as well as permitting businesses to discriminate against LGBT people on the grounds of religious belief.
The new law, signed into law by Republican Governor Pat McCrory, also bans transgender students in public schools from using their preferred bathroom.
Related: This trans man blew away North Carolina’s new bigoted law with just one picture
McCrory’s decision has attracted a legal challenge as well as a growing boycott of the state – with two of the largest cities in the US opting to ban travel to the North Carolina.
In close succession, the Mayor of San Francisco Ed Lee, Mayor of New York City Bill de Blasio and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced travel bans.
Now Boston has announced that it won’t pay for city workers to travel to the state.
The Boston City Council on Wednesday voted unanimously to ban taxpayer-funded travel to the state, following the introduction of the law.
“We are a city in Boston that values diversity, inclusion, and anti-discrimination,” City Councilor Josh Zakim, sponsor of the Boston law told the Boston Globe.
“I feel compelled to stand up and be counted at times like this. I think it’s important that Boston continues to lead on this issue.”
The city’s mayor Martin J Walsh, has already said he plans to sign the measure, which will take immediate effect.
In a statement, Walsh said: “In Boston we believe that all individuals should be treated equally, and I applaud Councilor Zakim for standing up against discrimination.”
Protesters delivered a portaloo Governor Pat McCrory after he signed the controversial HB 2 into law.
One House member last week tried to defend the bill, by claiming it was actually meant to protect trans people.
In an interview with NBC News, Governor McCrory said people’s anger was nothing more than “well coordinated political theatre” and that “no one’s rights had been taken away”.
In a remarkable contradiction, he said that it wasn’t his place or anyone in government’s place to tell businesses who they let use facilities, to then, in the same sentence, say he was doing just that in schools and colleges.
“We have the exact same rules and rights as 25 other states and all of a sudden this national political directed towards North Carolina, I think is well coordinated and more political theatre than reality,” he said.
