News Briefs for 08.23.19
Beyond the Carolinas
News from across the globe for 08.23.19.
Gavin Grimm was thrust into the national spotlight in 2014 as a transgender high school student, when he sued for the right to use the boys’ restroom in his Virginia public high school.
A ceremony took place on June 28 at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), honoring lawyers who fought North Carolina’s House Bill 2 (HB2), as well as transgender teen Gavin Grimm. All honorees were recognized for serving the LGBTQ community, both nationally and within the DOJ.
The U.S. Supreme Court vacated a lower court ruling and chose not to hear the case brought to it by Gavin Grimm and the City Council of the City of West Hollywood-approved an item that directs City of West Hollywood staff to take steps in prohibiting West Hollywood City Hall from doing business with entities that provide financial or other benefits to the President of the United States or his revocable trust.
The North Carolina legislature, dominated by Republicans since 2011, has spent a considerable sum legally defending its own laws. The Charlotte Observer reported recently that of $10.5 million, $1.2 million has been spent defending HB2 in court.
Public accommodations for transgender citizens has been at the forefront of North Carolina state politics with the passage of HB2, as well as a nationwide issue with the U.S. Department of Justice filing suit and the Obama administration issuing a directive to public schools requiring them to recognize transgender students by the gender with which they identify.