The NBA announced on Thursday, July 21, it will be moving the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte, North Carolina, following the state’s controversial anti-LGBT laws.
The decision comes following North Carolina’s House Bill 2, which mandates that transgender people must use the bathroom corresponding with their birth gender in public buildings, and bans the state’s municipalities from enacting antidiscrimination policies.
"Since March, when North Carolina enacted HB2 and the issue of legal protections for the LGBT community in Charlotte became prominent, the NBA and the Charlotte Hornets have been working diligently to foster constructive dialogue and try to effect positive change," the NBA's statement read. “We have been guided in these discussions by long-standing core values of our league. These include not only diversity, inclusion, fairness and respect for others but also the willingness to listen and consider opposing points of view.”
“Our weeklong schedule of All-Star events and activities is intended to be a global celebration of basketball, our league, and the values for which we stand,” the NBA continued. “While we recognize that the NBA cannot choose the law in every city, state, and country in which we do business, we do not believe we can successfully host our All-Stars festivities in Charlotte in the climate created by HB2.”
According to CNN, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver previously attempted to work with other NBA officials in an attempt to get North Carolina to change the law.
"There was an exhaustive effort from all parties to keep the event in Charlotte, and we are disappointed we were unable to do so," the Charlotte Hornets told CNN in a statement.
The game is scheduled to be held in February and, according to Yahoo, is now rumored to be held in either New Orleans or New York.
The NBA’s statement concluded that the association hopes to hold the 2019 All-Star Game in North Carolina once again. The new location will be announced “in the coming weeks,” according to the NBA.
