Times News opinion piece – All people should be treated equally

   Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf says he will not be following New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s action in banning non-essential state employee travel to North Carolina and Mississippi in reaction to these states enacting laws that are  widely seen as discriminatory to Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgenders (LGBT). And that’s a good move.

  An even better move occurred last week when Wolf signed two executive orders to protect these residents against employment discrimination.

   One order bans discrimination "against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, color, religious creed, ancestry, union membership, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression or identity, national origin, AIDS or HIV status, or disability." The second imposes similar nondiscrimination requirements in awarding state contracts and grants.

   Wolf was critical of the North Carolina and Mississippi anti-LGBT laws banning people from using bathrooms that do not match the sex on their birth certificate.

   The governor acted after the General Assembly dragged its feet on passing legislation to ensure fair treatment of all persons, regardless of sexual orientation.

   In his announcement accompanying the signing of the executive orders, Wolf blamed Republicans for the lack of action on this ``very important legislation.” Wolf added: “With no sign that Republican leaders plan to free this bill that has broad, bi-partisan support, I am taking action to protect those that I can and send a signal to the country that Pennsylvania is open for business no matter who you are or whom you love.”

   Wolf issued a statement recently saying that North Carolina and Mississippi erred in passing laws that set up new statewide anti-discrimination policies that exclude LGBT members from protection against discriminatory practices and prohibit localities from enacting laws to protect this minority group.

  We agree with Wolf on both counts. It is not necessary to adopt a symbolic travel ban to the Tar Heel and Magnolia states; the more effective way to deal with this issue was to pass the protective legislation that Wolf had called for. Since that was not in the cards, the next best thing was having Wolf act with executive orders.

  The North Carolina law emerged in response to a nondiscrimination ordinance in Charlotte, the state’s largest city, that would allow transgenders to use restroom facilities that correspond to the gender with which they identify.

  In other words, if Caitlyn Jenner needed to use the restroom in Charlotte, she would use the ladies’ room, not the men’s room because she was formerly Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner. The new North Carolina law would require her to use the men’s room since that is her birth gender.

     In addition to Gov. Cuomo of New York, the governors of Vermont and Washington, along with the mayors of New York City, San Francisco and Seattle, have announced travel bans for official business in protest of the passage of North Carolina’s and Mississippi’s laws.

   Cuomo said the travel bans will be in effect until the laws are repealed.

  Despite what is shaping up as a heavy economic toll on his state, Gov. Pat McCrory of North Carolina is staunchly defending his decision to sign the legislation.

   In response to the legislation, PayPal announced it has withdrawn its plan to construct a major regional center in Charlotte, which would have brought 400 new jobs to the area.

     The National Basketball Association is considering moving its 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte, according to Commissioner Adam Silver.

   Bank of America, which is headquartered in Charlotte, became one of the latest major companies to announce its opposition to McCrory’s action. More than 80 chief executives, including Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook and Tim Cook of Apple, have announced their opposition in a letter addressed to McCrory. ``Such laws are bad for our employees and bad for business,” the CEOs said in their letter.  

 The American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina, Lambda Legal, and Equality North Carolina filed a federal lawsuit against North Carolina

   White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest called the laws ``mean-spirited."

  Mississippi’s Gov. Phil Bryant signed legislation allowing individuals, businesses and institutions with religious objections to deny service to gay couples.

   Meanwhile, in nearby Georgia, Gov. Nathan Deal vetoed a controversial religious liberties bill that had provoked outrage from the motion picture industry, sports teams and major companies for what critics described as discrimination against gay and transgender people.

 “I do not think we have to discriminate against anyone to protect the faith-based community in Georgia, which I and my family have been a part of for generations,” Deal said.

  His decision came two weeks after the state legislature passed a bill aimed at strengthening the rights of religious organizations to refuse service that clash with their faith, especially when it comes to same-sex marriage.  This would have meant that if a same-sex couple walked into an ice cream shop, they could have been denied service by an owner who was opposed to same sex couples on religious grounds.

  We live in a diverse and pluralistic society today, and all individuals should be allowed the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness, even if their lifestyles do not mesh with what some wistfully maintain is ``mainstream America.”

BRUCE FRASSINELLI