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Charlotte City Council to take up LGBT non-discrimination ordinances in February

Charlotte City Council is tentatively scheduled to reconsider a package of LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination ordinances at a vote on Feb. 8, following a community forum on the measures planned by the Charlotte Community Relations Committee and Community Building Initiative.

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By the numbers: New HIV stats show continued burden for gay men, men of color, youth

A new report on HIV diagnoses and prevention shows that gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM) continue to carry the largest burden of HIV transmission and risk, with dramatic increases of new diagnoses in African-American and Latino men.

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Attorneys: N.C. magistrate law unconstitutional, suit seeks to overturn anti-LGBT law

A federal lawsuit challenging North Carolina’s anti-LGBT “magistrate recusal” law on same-gender marriages has been filed in federal court. The challenge seeks to overturn Senate Bill 2, the law passed this year which opponents say violates the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection and Due Process clauses.

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Cotham won’t seek re-election to N.C. House, Maddalon files to run for open seat

North Carolina Democratic state Rep. Tricia Cotham has announced she won’t be seeking re-election to her House seat in 2016. Cotham, who’s served five terms in the legislature, made the announcement on Thursday. Her move opens up the potential for an openly LGBT lawmaker, something the state’s been missing since 2014, with openly gay Plaza Midwood businessman Billy Maddalon saying Thursday he’s considering a run.

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Belmont Abbey College, other Carolinas colleges receive anti-LGBT Title IX waivers

Belmont Abbey College is among four Carolinas-area religious colleges receiving waivers from the federal government’s Title IX protections in order to discriminate against LGBT students and employees.

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N.C. charter school votes to reinstate all clubs, including GSA

The board of directors of a North Carolina charter school voted Monday night to reinstate all student clubs, including a gay-straight alliance (GSA). The move came after the board temporarily suspended all clubs due to concerns and questions from some parents.

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Nearly 30 anti-LGBT N.C. leaders endorse Ted Cruz

Nearly 30 anti-LGBT North Carolina religious leaders, activists and pastors have endorsed Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz, including high-profile activists Flip Benham, Michael Brown and Ron Baity.

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KKK group opposing Jacksonville LGBT ordinance has N.C. ties

A Ku Klux Klan group distributing fliers in Jacksonville, Fla., neighborhoods — as that city continues to debate an LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination ordinance — has ties to North Carolina. Fliers distributed by the Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan were found by some neighbors and brought to local leaders’ attention last week. Jimmy Midyette […]

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Lake Lure, N.C., school set to reinstate GSA, other clubs, but not without continued backlash

A charter school in Lake Lure, N.C., is set to reinstate student clubs after controversy erupted earlier this month around the school’s newly established gay-straight student alliance (GSA). Despite what seems like forward movement, one local parent says she expects continued anti-LGBT backlash.

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Anti-gay hate crimes drop in Charlotte and N.C., race-related incidents rise

New hate crime statistics released this week by the Federal Bureau of Investigation show a slight decrease in the proportion of anti-LGB hate crimes in Charlotte and North Carolina.

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Leaders want trans education, begin renewed push for Charlotte non-discrimination ordinance

LGBT community groups in Charlotte and North Carolina are renewing their lobbying and education efforts on a package of local non-discrimination ordinances voted down by City Council in the spring.

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Clodfelter v. Roberts: What you need to know for Tuesday’s mayoral run-off

On Tuesday, voters will again head to the polls for the final match-up between incumbent Democratic Mayor Dan Clodfelter and candidate Jennifer Roberts. The two were the top vote getters in the Sept. 15 primary. Roberts pulled in the most votes, but came shy of avoiding this second primary. (See my past coverage here.) Local […]

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Charlotte’s LGBTQ Community Archive now has a name… three of them to be exact

The growing Charlotte LGBTQ Community Archive now has a name — three of them. The collection of historical papers and materials received its official naming at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte on Thursday, with honors going to two longtime community leaders and a transgender youth leader who died earlier this year.

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Mayoral candidate in Kings Mountain, N.C., suffers from ‘religious hallucinations’ and wants to ‘eradicate homosexuals’

A right-wing candidate for mayor in Kings Mountain, N.C. — less than an hour from Charlotte and home to North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore — says he’d use Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis as his model for how to govern… and take it just a few too many steps too far.

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All magistrates in one N.C. county refusing to perform marriages

All four magistrates in McDowell County, N.C., have opted to take advantage of North Carolina’s anti-LGBT magistrate refusal bill, citing their religious beliefs against same-gender marriage, according to a report today from WLOS.