North Carolina is a big sports state, especially when it comes to basketball. Just this past March, the Tar Heels played in the final round of March Madness, ultimately losing. However, that was not their first showing in the conference, and it will not be their last. In addition to basketball, other sports such as baseball and soccer make headlines and there is a big following in the state. The following that these games create for the schools at which they are played certainly helps with recruitment for the universities that make national appearances. The revenue that these games generate definitely does not hurt either.
Over the past few months, North Carolina has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. This past May, the state issued a law called the House Bill 2 (HB2), colloquially known as the bathroom bill, which essentially prevents trans people from using the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity. Instead, they must use the restroom for the sex that they were assigned at birth. In addition to that, the law nullified local ordinances that would extend more rights to the LGBTQ+ community that the state did not already have outlined in preexisting bills, affecting over a dozen cities across the state. This includes no additional protection for various sexual orientations in the workplace, although same-sex marriage was legalized in June 2015 nationwide.
So how do the two aforementioned topics correlate, besides being in North Carolina?
On September 12, the National Collegiate Athletic Association announced that they will relocate all seven championship events scheduled to take place in North Carolina during the 2016-17 season in reaction to the civil rights infringement. The NCAA regulates athletes of over 1,200 institutions, conferences, and individuals. Anybody that wants to play intercollegiate sports, whether it is Division I, II, or III, must abide by NCAA rules. It is important to the organization that all of its athletes, fans, coaches, and administrators feel safe and are treated with equality, dignity, and respect. The HB2 bill makes that nearly impossible for them to ensure. Mark Emmert, the president of the NCAA, said of their recent decision that “fairness is about more than the opportunity to participate in college sports, or even compete for championships. We believe in providing a safe and respectful environment at our events and are committed to providing the best experience for college athletes, fans, and everyone taking part in our championships.”
The events that will be moved to other states include women’s and men’s soccer, men’s basketball, women’s golf, women’s and men’s tennis, women’s lacrosse, and baseball. Championship events tend to attract a lot more people than regular season games. This means tens of millions of dollars in potential revenue that was once going to be generated in and for North Carolina is now going elsewhere. Ouch.
This is not the first time the NCAA has taken steps in combating social injustices, but it is the first of its kind. As the LGBTQ+ continues to make strides in the United States, it is important to see such influential institutions such as these to do everything in their power to protect those that they serve and help create safer spaces. North Carolina legislators who voted for the HB2 have barely batted an eyelash at the criticism from public figures and citizens alike, nor the lawsuits from the United States Department of Justice and the American Civil Liberties Union. However, the NCAA hit them where it hurt the most: financially. While the Department of Justice is threatening to cut some of the funding to the state, the NCAA already has, and will hopefully continue to do so if the bill is not overruled. The rights of trans people are often ignored in the media and this is bringing attention back to the issue and calling the state out for the injustice that it is doing, which is important in forming better and safer environments for trans people in the state and across the nation.
