N.C. reaches settlement on ‘bathroom bill’

A federal judge in North Carolina approved a settlement Tuesday that prohibits the state government from banning transgender people from using bathrooms in state buildings that match their gender identity, ending a yearslong legal battle that prompted a divisive cultural debate.

The settlement, proposed by civil rights groups and Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, could also end a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of two bathroom bills that thrust North Carolina into the epicenter of the nation’s culture wars over protections for LGBT people.

The settlement concerns the use of bathrooms in public buildings like state offices and highway rest stops. Left unresolved was a part of the lawsuit challenging a moratorium on local antidiscrimination ordinances.

“It feels like a consolation prize,” said Joaquin Carcano, a transgender man and the lead plaintiff in the case. “Legally we can’t be punished under these laws, but this resolution doesn’t provide safety or peace of mind when we can still be fired for being who we are.”

North Carolina’s House Bill 2, which the Republican-controlled Legislature passed in March 2016, required transgender people to use the bathroom that corresponds with the gender on their birth certificate. It also made it illegal for municipalities to adopt antidiscrimination policies intended to protect LGBT people.

The law drew nationwide outrage and unleashed severe economic consequences.