NC Ranks Among Lowest In US For Basic LGBTQ Equality: Report

NORTH CAROLINA — North Carolina is one of more than two dozen states where LGBTQ residents remain at risk for discrimination due to the lack of statutory protections, according to a new State Equality Index report released Monday by the Human Rights Campaign and the Equality Federation Institute.

In the SEI report released Monday, North Carolina was placed in the "High Priority to Achieve Basic Equality" category, and was joined 24 other states that scored lowest in the nation in its assessment of statewide LGBTQ-related legislation and policies in numerous areas, including parenting laws and policies, non-discrimination laws and policies, hate crime and criminal justice laws.

North Carolina does not support LGBTQ housing, employment, hate crimes, public accommodations, education, transgender health care, and anti-conversion therapy, according to the Human Rights Campaign. The state does support marriage equality and other relationship recognition, and school anti-bullying, the report said.

• The other states that joined North Carolina in this low ranking are: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

• "Working Toward Innovative Equality" is the highest ranking in the SEI categories: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.

• Two states are in the category "Solidifying Equality": Iowa and Virginia.
• Four states are in the category "Building Equality": Kansas, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Wisconsin.

According to the Human Rights Campaign, in 2020, 185 anti-LGBTQ bills were introduced by 35 states, while four were passed into law. The SEI report's release comes as more than 40 state legislatures and the District of Columbia have opened their 2021 sessions.

Skyla Luckey, Patch Staff, contributed