LGBT travellers may face discrimination in the US, the UK Foreign Office has warned.
The United Kingdom has released a warning to its citizens considering travel to the United States, saying recently-passed laws in North Carolina and Mississippi could discriminate against LGBT travellers.
The travel advisory update was posted on the Foreign Office’s website on Wednesday and was directed to the UK’s LGBT community.
“The US is an extremely diverse society and attitudes towards LGBT people differ hugely across the country,” the update reads. “LGBT travellers may be affected by legislation passed recently in the states of North Carolina and Mississippi.”
The Foreign Office directs LGBT travellers to consult their general travel advice for the LGBT community before making travel plans. It advises against “excessive physical shows of affection,” and warns that LGBT people may face discrimination while attempting to book hotel accommodation.
“Some hotels, especially in rural areas, won’t accept bookings from same-sex couples – check before you go,” warn the guidelines.
There has been an increasing backlash against the two southern states since both passed broad legislation which put discrimination against LGBT people into law.
The Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant signed sweeping legislation earlier this month that allows individuals and institutions with religious objections to homosexuality to deny services to LGBT clients.
In North Carolina, House Bill 2 has banned anti-discrimination protections based on sexual orientation and has mandated that transgender people use bathrooms in government buildings that match the assigned gender on their birth certificates.
The Obama administration has considered whether the anti-LGBT legislation makes the two states ineligible for billions of dollars in federal aid.
The UK’s travel update comes just days ahead of President Obama’s London visit.