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LGBT groups urge ACC to reject compromise on North Carolina bathroom bill

Scott Gleeson
USA TODAY Sports

LGBT sports activists have a message for John Swofford: Don't budge.

ACC commissioner John Swofford speaks with the media during the ACC Football Kickoff at Westin Charlotte.

The Atlantic Coast Conference commissioner expressed hope that North Carolina could soon host ACC tournaments if newly proposed bipartisan legislation replaces the controversial House Bill 2. The law prevents cities and counties from passing protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity. And public schools must require bathrooms or locker rooms be designated for use only by people based on their biological sex.

The league, following the lead of the NCAA, removed all of its championship events last fall.

“It’s encouraging that a bipartisan effort has been initiated in the North Carolina General Assembly regarding HB2,” Swofford said in a statement. “If legislation is passed that resets the law as it was prior to HB2, it will present the opportunity to reopen the discussion with the ACC Council of Presidents regarding neutral site conference championships being in the state of North Carolina."

But some LGBT organizations believe House Bill 186, proposed Wednesday, doesn't fully repeal HB2 and is still discriminatory. The bill would allow North Carolina cities to pass their own nondiscrimination ordinances, with the limitation that they would not be allowed to regulate bathroom access in private facilities.

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"The ACC must stand for a full repeal of HB2," said Shane Windmeyer, executive director of the LGBT sports organization, Campus Pride. "We need to let the ACC Commissioner and ACC schools know that this repeal effort is not a fix at all. It is not a full repeal and still discriminates against transgender people. The ACC, NCAA and others must stand strong for its values of inclusion and diversity of all athletes and sports fans."

Campus Pride has organized a petition to HB186 in the form of an online letter — addressed to Swofford — for supporters to sign. The letter urges the ACC to not be "fooled by this bait and switch tactic" and that the "ACC cannot stand for anything less than a FULL REPEAL."

Rep. Chuck McGrady, R-Henderson, a sponsor of HB186 along with another Republican and two Democrats, has sold the bill as a compromise. The bill would provide universities and community colleges the option to expand protected classes and administers stricter penalties for bathroom privacy-related crimes.

"For any sporting institution that has moved events out of North Carolina, they've made it clear that they want their LGBT constituents treated equally," said Hudson Taylor, executive director of Athlete Ally, an LGBT organization dedicating to eradicating homophobia and transphobia through sports. "If the repeal of HB2 does not meet that standard, and has some watered down (solution), then I really don't think any sporting body will be fooled by a fake fix."

The NCAA did not immediately respond to USA TODAY Sports' request for comment.

This is not the first attempt to repeal HB2 with a solution. House Bill 82, also filed in February, would provide broader protection for the transgender community, but is unlikely to be passed.

In Texas, a similar bill, Senate Bill 6, could be passed in late March or early April and it holds a workaround clause that would allow organizations like the NCAA or NFL — Super Bowl LI was in Houston — to lease stadiums and enforce their own inclusive bathroom rules.

The "bathroom bills" come at a crucial national turning point in regards to transgender rights. Last week, the Trump administration announced an end to federal protections that allowed transgender students to use facilities based on their gender identity, thus leaving states and school districts to determine their own policies.

The ACC was following the lead of the NCAA when it removed all of its tournaments from North Carolina in September. The NCAA made an emphatic statement against HB2 when it removed all of its championship events from the state, claiming the bill is contrary to the association’s overall initiative for inclusion. That move, coupled with the NBA’s decision to relocate its All-Star game from Charlotte plus numerous event cancellations, reportedly has cost the state close to $4 million.

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