The North Carolina NAACP is considering legal options after several members were arrested at the special legislative session last week.
The group held a press conference on Thursday to discuss grievances with legislators after members were arrested for trespassing at the special session.
President of the state chapter of the NAACP Reverend Dr. William Barber led the conference. He says he’s calling for a national economic boycott of North Carolina until HB2 is fully repealed and until last week’s SB4 is partially repealed.
“What you should do with power is just do right. What you should do with power is simply follow the constitution.”
Barber says the sections of SB4 that need to be repealed are the ones that merge the Board of Elections with Ethics Enforcement, and the one that makes state constitutional challenges be heard by the full Court of Appeals instead of by the North Carolina Supreme Court.
He also says the organization has lawyers preparing a memo for every legal option to challenge last week’s special session.
Hillsborough Commissioner Jenn Weaver protested at the session and was arrested last week. She says she was arrested on unconstitutional charges and that the current majority in the legislature is there because of illegal gerrymandering in North Carolina districts.
“At its best, politics should always be about ideas that are being argued so that people can decide which ones they want to have in our communities. What kind of government we wish to have, but the current majority isn’t winning on ideas.”
Manju Rajendran was also protesting at the session. Rajendran says she had to hand her child to a relative as she was arrested. She says it’s important that legislators remain accountable to the people, regardless of political party.
“We’ll show them at the legislature; we’ll show them at the ballot box; we’ll show them in the streets. We’ll haunt them in their sleep until they understand that all political power comes from the people.”
Barber says the most important thing to remember is that people from all walks of life are united in the movement to end inequality in North Carolina.
“Look. It’s black; it’s white; it’s young; it’s old; it’s diversity. This is the forward together movement. This is many groups coming together. This is the modern day resistance to unconstitutional actions. And this is the new south rising.”
Barber also says he’s calling for a mass demonstration in Raleigh on February 11.
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