The NCAA appears ready to hop on the “gender neutral” bandwagon with respect to bathroom facilities, the College Fix reports. The college sports governing body is asking prospective host cities for NCAA tournaments and championship games to “demonstrate how they will provide an environment that is safe, healthy and free of discrimination and also safeguards the dignity of everyone involved in the event.”
The new requirement, according to a July 22 press release, was installed in response to “the recent actions of legislatures in several states, which have passed laws allowing businesses or government to refuse to provide services to some people based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.”
The most notorious example of “recent action” at the state government level is North Carolina’s HB2 , the so-called “bathroom bill,” which prohibits individuals from using public restrooms that do not correspond to the gender listed on their birth certificate.
Critics argue that the law discriminates against transgender individuals. A number of corporations and celebrity performers have boycotted the state in protest.
The NCAA announcement came just days after the NBA decided to relocate the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte, N.C., specifically citing HB2 as a violation of the league’s “long-standing core values,” such as “diversity, inclusion, fairness and respect for others.”
North Carolina lawmakers have criticized the NBA’s decision, noting that the league has previously sponsored games in countries with abysmal human rights records, such as China and Russia.
NCAA vice president Mark Lewis said the change was necessary to provide “an inclusive environment for student-athletes, coaches, administrators and fans.” The new requirement will apply to a wide array of NCAA-sponsored events, from the Final Four to “leadership development conferences.”
The revised NCAA questionnaire asks prospective host cities (and states) if they impose any measures to “regulate choice of bathrooms or locker rooms,” or that “allow for refusal of accommodations or service to any person.”
