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The National Collegiate Athletic Association will once again permit championship events to be held in North Carolina after the state’s Legislature repealed a controversial bill revoking anti-discrimination protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people.
In a statement issued Tuesday, the NCAA said its Board of Governors “reluctantly” voted to allow future games in light of a new state law that reworked HB2, the so-called bathroom bill, named for its prohibition on transgender people using restrooms that match their gender identity. The NCAA in its statement called the new law “far from perfect” and a “compromise.”
Under the new law, the state now regulates use of bathrooms, showers and other facilities in public spaces and doesn't allow local governments to enact ordinances to control public accommodations like bathrooms. Advocates for gay and transgender people say the new law does nothing to offer protections, particularly to transgender people.
The NCAA’s governing board said it would require “additional documentation” from sites selected for championship events on how athletes and fans would be protected from discrimination.
Other advocacy organizations, including the Human Rights Campaign, a major LGBTQ lobbying group, were still quick to criticize the NCAA’s decision. “The NCAA's decision to backtrack on their vow to protect LGBTQ players, employees and fans is deeply disappointing and puts people at risk,” HRC President Chad Griffin said in a statement Tuesday. “After drawing a line in the sand and calling for repeal of HB2, the NCAA simply let North Carolina lawmakers off the hook.”
