In a post-Caitlin Jenner society, most people know about the growing controversy of transgender individuals. They have been fighting for equality and acceptance for a long time but now that the topic has become more public, they have garnered more voices to join their cause. As more information comes to light governments are getting involved in the discussion about what to do in regards to gender identities. Should they recognize a person’s biological identity or what they themselves identify as? One of the states that has joined the debate is North Carolina, who recently passed a new piece of legislation titled “House Bill 2.” But the question is what does this bill state exactly? There is a lot more to it than just the question of treatment of transgender individuals.

“House Bill 2” was created to deal with the topic of discrimination, the reason for the session in which it was drafted. It outlawed an ordinance from Charlotte that extended protection from discriminations in business to gays, lesbians and transgenders. It also included a section that allowed transgender individuals to choose a bathroom based on the gender they identify with. The first section of HB2 outlaws that part of the ordinance, calling for bathrooms to be used based on that person’s biological sex. This lead to so many other pieces of legislation that deal with discrimination.

Another section of the bill dictates that cities can no longer pass their own discrimination laws; they can only follow the laws set out by the state. Going off of that, court cases that deal with discrimination issues cannot be filed in state court, only federal court. However these parts of the bill have not been discussed much in the media or in courts. The so-called “Bathroom Bill” is what has garnered attention despite the later sections being much more controversial.

Federal court cases take much more time to be processed and can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars compared to a local court. There are not a lot of people who would be willing to spend the time or money into getting a case into the federal court system, particularly one that the state might deem reasonable based on HB2. This also raises the issue of discrimination cases becoming more prominent throughout the state because people see no severe punishment. Since people most likely will not go through the hassle of filling a lawsuit, there are far fewer reprimands standing in the way of calling someone a name or denying a service.

Denying someone the option of choosing a bathroom based on the sex they identify with is cruel and should not be a piece of legislation made by a government. However North Carolina's House Bill 2 denies people the option of justice when it takes away filing lawsuits in their own state. There are many more problems the bill sets forward and more people need to be informed of the rest of HB2.