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The North Carolina transgender community is still living in fear nearly two and a half years after the bathroom bill passed, according to the ACLU and lead plaintiff in a lawsuit against the state and the University of North Carolina (UNC).

The only difference between now and then? House Bill 2 goes by a different name: HB142.

The political compromise that repealed HB2 was enough for the NCAA and ACC, both of which have returned sporting events to North Carolina.

But is disappointment with the compromise and a flurry of new anti-LGBT proposals from the General Assembly continuing to hurt the state’s reputation? And can it recover?

Now that HB2 has been partially repealed, enough for the NCAA and ACC anyway, a lot of folks in Raleigh are hoping the issue of discrimination in North Carolina goes away for a while, at least for the four years that local governments must now wait before protecting LGBTQ people from being fired or denied services because of their sexual orientation.

In a strange and remarkable replay of the controversial one-day special legislative session that took place one year ago last week, the North Carolina General Assembly passed legislation today in a matter of hours that purports to repeal HB2 – the state’s infamous LGBTQ discrimination law. Surprisingly, the proposal also appears to have the backing of Governor Roy Cooper, who issued a terse statement of support last night.

For more than a year now, North Carolina conservative lawmakers and advocates have been repeating the absurd and offensive mantra that opponents of HB2 – the state’s infamous LGBTQ discrimination law – want to force women and girls to make use of showers and restrooms alongside men disguised as women.

Thursday marks one year since HB2 was signed into law, setting off a firestorm of controversy that led to statewide boycotts, mass protests and contributed to the downfall of the governor who supported it.