Why NFL won't shun North Carolina in wake of controversial LGBT bill
As other sports leagues and organizations pledge to track the law signed by Gov. Pat McCrory last month, the embattled league must mull political, economic questions.
A Carolina Panthers fan displays a cape with the team's logo before the NFL Super Bowl 50 game on Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016, in Santa Clara, Calif. The league has declined to move an owners' meeting scheduled for May in Charlotte N.C., in the wake of a controversial law signed by the state's governor that critics say curbs protections for LGBT people.
Ben Margot/AP/File
Despite widespread opposition to a controversial law in North Carolina that critics say limits protections for gay and transgender people, the NFL has declined to move the location of an owners鈥� meeting scheduled for May 23-25 in Charlotte, N.C.
Several other , including the NCAA, ACC, hockey鈥檚 Carolina Hurricanes, and the US Golf Association have all pledged to monitor the debates around the law.
The NBA has also expressed concerns about how the bill could impact its 2017 All-Star Game, which is currently set to be played in Charlotte, and has received a proposal to move the game to Atlanta .
The NFL appears to be taking a different stance. 鈥淲e embrace diversity and inclusiveness in all of our policies," league spokesman Brian McCarthy . 鈥淭he Panthers have made clear their position of non-discrimination and respect for all their fans. The city of Charlotte has also made clear its position."
But, he added, 鈥渢he meeting will take place in the city of Charlotte.鈥�
The decision is one of several controversies roiling the league in recent years, including questions about whether it covered up evidence of concussions in football players and , and a debate over whether to rename the Washington Redskins that prompted criticism of team owner Dan Snyder.
When North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory signed HB2 on March 23, it quickly drew public outcry. The bill negates a local ordinance in Charlotte that provided protections for transgender people who use public restrooms based on their gender identity.
It also overrules local ordinances across the state that provide additional protections for LGBT people.
According to the campaign finance website , Panthers owner Jerry Richardson and three members of the team鈥檚 ownership group have , a Republican who previously spent 14 years as mayor of Charlotte.
In Georgia, Gov. Nathan Deal after the NFL warned that it could risk Atlanta鈥檚 bid for the Superbowl and the NCAA said the bill鈥檚 passage could influence whether the state could host championship games. The bill would have strengthened legal protections for opponents of same-sex marriage.
The North Carolina law has also drawn similar concerns about its economic impact. On Tuesday, for a new operations center in Charlotte that would have created more than 400 jobs, because it is opposing the law.
Charlotte's Bank of America Stadium is currently undergoing an $87.5-million, publicly funded renovation to increase its chances of聽hosting a Super Bowl. The earliest Charlotte could host the NFL Championship would be in 2022, .
The NBA says it is also mulling the proposals to move next year鈥檚 All-Star game.
鈥淲e are deeply concerned that this discriminatory law runs counter to our guiding principles of equality and mutual respect and do not yet know what impact it will have鈥� on the game, the league said .
Former player and veteran commentator Charles Barkley has taken a stronger stance.
鈥淎s a black person, I鈥檓 against any form of discrimination, against whites, Hispanics, gays, lesbians, however you want to phrase it,鈥� Mr. Barkley said on Sunday.
鈥淚t鈥檚 my job, with the position of power that I鈥檓 in and being able to be on television, I鈥檓 supposed to stand up for the people that can鈥檛 stand up for themselves,鈥� he added. 鈥淪o I think the NBA should move the All-Star Game from Charlotte.鈥�