NCAA Takes Strong Position Relocating Championship Events Due to Anti-LGBT Law

In a remarkable move by the NCAA, it has deemed North Carolina unsuitable to host Championship Events for its Anti-LGBT Discrimination Laws.

In a remarkable move by the NCAA, it has deemed North Carolina unsuitable to host Championship Events. The NCAA decision came after North Carolina approved Anti-LGBT Discrimination Laws.

Currently, the NCAA is looking for a new home for seven of its championship events that would usually take place in North Carolina. The NCAA has taken the courageous position to stand in solidarity with the LGBT community. Earlier this year North Carolina passed House Bill 2 (HB2), the Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act. Some have dubbed it the Bathroom Bill, but its power is far more reaching. The law authorized a statewide policy that bans individuals from using public bathrooms that do not correspond to the sex identified on their birth certificate.

The NCAA Board of Governors removed the events due to four main factors:

• North Carolina laws invalidate any local law that treats sexual orientation as a protected class or has a purpose to prevent discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender individuals.
• North Carolina has the only statewide law that makes it unlawful to use a restroom different from the gender on one’s birth certificate, regardless of gender identity.
• North Carolina law provides legal protections for government officials to refuse services to the LGBT community.
• Five states plus numerous cities prohibit travel to North Carolina for public employees and representatives of public institutions, which could include student-athletes and campus athletics staff. These states are New York, Minnesota, Washington, Vermont and Connecticut.

The entire state of North Carolina specifically the towns of Cary and Greensboro could find themselves in financial trouble. Those cities survive off the money the NCAA events bring in. The NCCA are not the only ones rethinking its involvement with North Carolina due to HB2. The entertainment industry where the first to start pulling out of North Carolina. Famous musicians like Bruce Springsteen, Jimmy Buffett, and Nick Jonas have canceled concerts. Many musicians and stand-up comedians continued with the concerts but donated the money to an LGBT charity. Large companies like PayPal, Deutsche Bank, and Red Ventures were considering development or in the process of expanding into North Carolina. Those projects have since been halted or have been abandon altogether. The HB2 law will cause North Carolina to lose millions of dollars in revenue and thousands of new jobs.

In the aftermath of the NCAA announcement, The North Carolina Republican Party (NCGOP) sent out a shocking press release.

The most horrifying quote from the NCGOP is, “I wish the NCCA was this concerned about women who were raped at Baylor.”

It is important to note none of the rape victims at Baylor were assaulted by a member of the LGBT community. It is laughable for the NCGOP to associate the transgender communities desire to access to public facilities and dignity to the rape coverup at Baylor. The assumption that the NCAA would merge men’s and women’s teams together just shows how absurd the entire press release is.

Next: The Art Briles Apology Tour is Officially a Gigantic Failure

It is evident the NCGOP is digging its heals in and not going to change its stance of HB2. The real reform in North Carolina needs to take place in the voter’s box.