Gov. Pat McCrory says the NCAA failed to show North Carolina respect when it moved championships and tournament games out of the state because of a law that governs which bathrooms transgender people must use.
McCrory responded Sept. 13 to the NCAA’s decision. The action was related to House Bill 2, which McCrory signed into law.
The law in part says people must use school and government bathrooms corresponding to the sex on their birth certificates. Several groups have challenged that in federal court. Meanwhile, other states are fighting an Obama administration directive for transgender people to use school bathrooms aligned with their gender identity.
McCrory says institutions should let such litigation take its course without threats of “economic threats or political retaliation.” He says the NCAA failed to do that at the expense of North Carolina “student athletes and hard-working men and women.”
NCAA President Mark Emmert says whether the Atlantic Coast Conference decides to follow the association’s lead and pull events out of North Carolina because of a state law that some say can lead to discrimination against LGBT people is completely up to the league and its members.
The ACC championship football game is schedule to be held in Charlotte on Dec. 3.
ACC Commissioner John Swofford issued a strong statement Monday night against the law known as HB2. He said he expects the conference’s presidents and chancellors to consider relocating the game.
The law requires transgender people to use restrooms at schools and government buildings corresponding to the sex on their birth certificates.
Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee for president, supports the NCAA’s decision to pull events from North Carolina.
She tweeted: “The @NCAA is right to pull tournament games from North Carolina because of the anti-LGBT HB2 law. Discrimination has no place in America. -H”
