North Carolina Doubles Down on Bigotry, Vows to Defy Federal Order to Fix Anti-LGBT Law

Republican lawmakers in North Carolina vowed on Thursday to defy a federal order to repeal or stop enforcing a controversial law that requires transgender people to use restrooms that match the sex on their birth certificate rather than their gender identity.

RELATED: North Carolina Hotel Adopts 'We Don't Care' Bathroom Signs

The move follows a notification by the Justice Department that informed Republican Governor Pat McCrory in a letter Wednesday that the so-called “House Bill 2” violates sections of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

Justice gave the state until Monday to remedy the violations or risk losing billions of dollars in federal education funding. However, the state House Speaker Tim Moore said he and his fellow Republican congressmen had no intention of meeting the deadline.

“We don’t ever want to lose any money, but we’re not going to get bullied by the Obama administration to take action prior to Monday’s date. That’s not how this works,” he said.

Meanwhile Democratic legislators just urged Republicans to take action to ensure the law met the federally requested standards.

WATCH: LGBT Activists Protest North Carolina's Discriminatory Law

The law has been at the center of a debate over equality and privacy freedoms and is seen as discriminatory against gay and transgender people in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court last year ruling that legalized same-sex marriage.

LGBT activists in North Carolina and across the country have been protesting the discriminatory law. They have been supported by celebrities, businesses and organizations who have all threatened boycotts and canceled appearances in the state.