video MOST POPULAR

Justice Dept sues NC over 'bathroom law'

Monday, May 09, 2016 - 01:00

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch announces the Justice Department is suing North Carolina to get it to abandon a law that restricts use of public restrooms. Rough Cut (no reporter narration).

▲ Hide Transcript

▶ View Transcript

ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION) The U.S. Justice Department on Monday sued North Carolina to get it to abandon a law that restricts use of public restrooms, further escalating a fight over the rights of transgender Americans. Hours earlier, North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory and the state's secretary of public safety had sued the Department of Justice for declaring the law a civil rights violation, accusing it of "baseless and blatant overreach." In March, North Carolina became the first state in the country to ban people from using multiple occupancy restrooms or changing rooms in public buildings and schools that do not match the sex on their birth certificate. U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch said the department also "retains the option" of curtailing federal funding to North Carolina over the issue. "None of us can stand by when a state enters the business of legislating identity and insists that a person pretend to be something or someone that they are not," said Lynch, comparing the measure to Jim Crow-era racial discrimination laws and bans on same-sex marriage. The Justice Department's complaint, which was filed in federal district court in North Carolina, named the state of North Carolina, McCrory, the state's Department of Public Safety and the University of North Carolina system as defendants. The department's top civil rights lawyer, Vanita Gupta, sent letters to the same group last week, saying the ban was a civil rights violation and the state could face a federal lawsuit if it did not stop enforcing it by Monday. The North Carolina officials sued Gupta as well as U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch for their "radical reinterpretation" of federal civil rights law in federal district court in North Carolina. "We're taking the Obama admin to court. They're bypassing Congress, attempting to rewrite law & policies for the whole country, not just NC," McCrory, a Republican, wrote on Twitter. McCrory told reporters that North Carolina leaders had been forced to pass the law, known as HB 2, after the Charlotte city council passed an ordinance requiring access to bathrooms based on gender identity in public as well as private buildings. The Republican leaders of North Carolina's state legislature also sued the U.S. government over the law on Monday, hours after McCrory's lawsuit.

Featured Videos

U.S., France fly high as indoor skydiving champs

The United States walk away with three gold medals at the FAI World Indoor Skydiving Championships with host country France also scoring big

INSIGHT: London eco-activists turn to superglue

Environmental activists glue themselves to a train, lorry, building and each other in a series of protests to force Britain to take more radical measures to avert climate change

Here's the exhibit; New York showcases art of punk rock

The Museum of Arts and Design in Manhattan is putting on display more than 400 of punk rock's most memorable graphics, including flyers, posters and album covers

Afghan bird hunters carry on tradition amid chaos

Bird hunting is an ancient sport in Afghanistan, where local and migrating species have flocked for thousands of years. The tradition has persisted even through 40 years of violent conflict thanks to hunters like Jan Agha, who hopes to pass his skills on to his sons

Meghan's royal baby will be bold - astrologer

Boy or girl, Prince Harry and his American wife Meghan's first child will be bold and courageous, and Harry will be the more patient parent, according to a U.S. astrologer