White, brown, and black. Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and atheist. Trans, cis, gay, straight, tattooed and balding. Over 2,000 North Carolinians of every possible description celebrated our diversity and our solidarity yesterday outside the state’s General Assembly, there to demand the repeal of the state’s notorious ‘bathroom bill,’ HB2. Some came willing to be arrested — and 54 were, following their sit-in at the office of state Senate leader Phil Berger. The rest of us came to support them, and to say “That is not us. This is us!”
United Methodist Church minister Sarah Howell (above, right) told me,
“UMC has a long history of support for social justice. We have a set of social principles which teach us how to interact with the world as a faith community. There is a lot in that set of principles which is relevant to the subject of this bill (HB2). The bathroom issue is really a smokescreen for a lot of the other issues. Our principles call for a living wage for all people, and also speak out about sexual assault. I think it's important to be talking about sexual assault, but for that conversation to come about through transphobia is a sad thing.”
Lovely, courageous, interesting, kind souls. Brothers and sisters. #WeAreThis.