Obama says 2 state laws 'wrong' on LGBT

LONDON -- President Obama said Friday that North Carolina's and Mississippi's laws limiting protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people are "wrong" and "should be overturned."

Speaking with British Prime Minister David Cameron at a news conference in London, Obama praised Americans living in states that have recently taken steps to single out individuals on the basis of their gender identity or sexual orientation, even as he criticized the laws' approach to the issue.

The North Carolina measure requires individuals to use the bathroom that matches the gender listed on their birth certificate and restricts local governments from providing specific protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Mississippi's law allows people to withhold services from lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender individuals on religious grounds.

The British Foreign Office recently issued an advisory warning British citizens they could face discrimination in parts of the United States based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

"The U.S. is an extremely diverse society and attitudes towards LGBT people differ hugely across the country," the advisory on the Foreign Office website says. "LGBT travelers may be affected by legislation passed recently in the states of North Carolina and Mississippi."

Obama assured Britons they should feel free to travel throughout the United States, even though he criticized laws targeting members of the LGBT community.

"I want everybody here in the United Kingdom to know that the people of North Carolina and Mississippi are wonderful people," he said. "I also think that the laws that have been passed there are wrong and should be overturned.

"And they're in response to politics, in part; in part, some strong emotions that are generated by people -- some of whom are good people -- but I just disagree with when it comes to respecting the equal rights of all people, regardless of sexual orientation, whether they're transgender or gay or lesbian," he added. "And although I respect their different viewpoints, I think it's very important for us not to send signals that anybody is treated differently."

In recent weeks, White House officials have criticized the North Carolina law, as well as similar measures in other states. But this marked the first time Obama had spoken out on the subject.

A spokesman for Republican Gov. Pat McCrory of North Carolina responded to Obama's comments by saying the governor agrees that all people are welcome to visit North Carolina and will be treated with extraordinary hospitality.

"However, the governor respectfully disagrees with the political left's national agenda to mandate changes to basic, common-sense restroom norms," said the spokesman, Josh Ellis.

North Carolina state Senate leader Phil Berger, a Republican and one of the most vocal supporters of the law, responded to Obama's comments in a press release stating that "not every father has the luxury of Secret Service agents protecting his daughters' right to privacy in the girls' bathroom."

Berger has said the law protects women and girls from men using the false pretense of being transgender to enter women's restrooms and locker rooms.

Information for this article was contributed by William Wan of The Washington Post.

A Section on 04/23/2016

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