Jun 10, 2014
Equality NC Responds to New N.C. Republican Platform

Raleigh, N.C. – Equality NC, North Carolina’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) advocacy organization, responded today to the North Carolina Republican Party's recently-adopted party platform, which includes some anti-LGBT clauses and removes others.
As Qnotes reported this week, [m]eeting in a statewide convention over the weekend in Cherokee, delegates of the North Carolina Republican Party adopted their new party platform, reasserting some anti-LGBT clauses and softening others.
In 2012, state Republicans’ platform called for support of both state and federal constitutional amendments limiting the right to marriage. But, this year, perhaps in response to the wave of federal judicial victories on marriage equality, that anti-gay opposition has waned slightly. The adopted platform makes no mention of a federal constitutional amendment and now states, “We support the marriage amendment as part of the North Carolina Constitution and encourage all efforts to defend it.”
Other changes, too, softened the party platform’s anti-gay animus. In 2012, the platform said, “We oppose adoption by same sex couples.” That line was struck completely, replaced in a similar section with support for single parents and the line, “We embrace the principle that all Americans should be treated with respect and dignity.”
The newest version also drops the line, “We oppose taxpayer-funded initiatives that support cohabitation, include taxpayer-funded benefit plans for unmarried partners.”
On public school sex education curriculum, however, the party’s platform remained essentially unchanged, calling for government to teach “abstinence until marriage as the expected norm for sexual behavior” and stating, “Public schools should not be used to teach children about homosexual behavior.”
Equality NC executive director Chris Sgro was encouraged by the softening of some language, but called on the GOP to go further.