North Carolina must “demonstrate how they will provide an environment that is safe, healthy and free of discrimination, plus safeguards the dignity of everyone involved in the event,” in order to keep NCAA basketball tournament games, NCAA officials have warned.
Greensboro and Charlotte are set to host the NCAA basketball tournament’s first and second round games in 2017 and 2018, according to ESPN. In order for the sites to still host those games, the cities must submit to the NCAA’s Board of Governors Ad Hoc Committee to Promote Cultural Diversity and Equity a plan to prove there will be no discrimination, the NCAA said.
The move comes after North Carolina enacted a law that many say allows for LGBT discrimination, as it doesn’t allow transgender people to use the bathroom of their choice.
“The higher education community is a diverse mix of people from different racial, ethnic, religious and sexual orientation backgrounds,” NCAA board chairman and Kansas State president Kirk Schulz said in a statement. “So it is important that we assure that community … will always enjoy the experience of competing and watching at NCAA championships without concerns of discrimination.”
The NCAA cited past anti-discrimination measures it has enacted, such as not allowing championship events in states where governments fly the Confederate battle flag.
The Human Rights campaign praised the NCAA’s move.
“The NCAA has sent a very clear message that unfair and unjust discrimination against LGBT people will not be tolerated by the association, and we hope lawmakers are listening,” HRC President Chad Griffin said in a blog post. “In order for cities to even qualify to host these major sporting events, they must now have commonsense, LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination protections. We commend the NCAA Board of Governors for taking this critically important stand in favor of fairness and equality.”
