Against Me! frontwoman Laura Jane Grace has said that she is planning to visit North Carolina and play live as a “protest” at the state’s controversial new HB2 legislation.
Artists including Bruce Springsteen and Ringo Starr have recently cancelled concerts in North Carolina in protest of a recent law—North Carolina’s House Bill 2, otherwise known as the Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act, which prohibits transgender people from using bathrooms and locker rooms that do not match the “biological sex” listed on their birth certificate.
Trans singer Grace has joined other artists, including Cyndi Lauper, in saying that they will continue to visit the state and perform live.
Against Me! are due to play in North Carolina next month (May) and Grace says she will use the gig as “a form of protest.” While commeding those who have boycotted the gig, Grace want to be there for the people who can’t boycott the state: “They live here. They pay taxes. They are prisoners to it.”
“I’m going to create an event around the show as a form of protest to say that despite whatever stupid laws they enact, trans people are not going to be scared. They are not going to go away,” Grace told BuzzFeed News. “I think the real danger with HB2 is that it creates a target on transgender people specifically. When you feel targeted as a trans person, the natural inclination is to go into hiding. But visibility is more important than ever; to go there and have the platform of a stage to stand on and speak your mind and represent yourself.”
It was suggested to me in an interview that we might cancel our May 15th show in Durham, NC because of the states HB2 bill. Hell no! (1/2)
— Laura Jane Grace (@LauraJaneGrace) March 30, 2016
I'm even more eager to play North Carolina 'cause of the bill! Let me know if there's any activist groups that can come table the show (2/2)
— Laura Jane Grace (@LauraJaneGrace) March 30, 2016
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