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2017 NBA All-Star Game Moved From North Carolina

Since the passing of House Bill 2 in North Carolina, several boycotts and event cancellations have hit the state. The latest blow was a major sporting-event cancellation on Thursday, July 21, as the NBA decided to move its 2017 All-Star Game away from Charlotte, N.C.

According to multiple reports, New Orleans is the frontrunner to take the Charlotte Hornets’ spot. The league http://www.nba.com/2016/news/07/21/nba-statement-all-star-game-relocation-from-charlotte/">said in a statement on Thursday that it hopes to reschedule in Charlotte for the 2019 All-Star Game. Los Angeles is already scheduled to host the event in 2018.

"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 statement read. “We have been guided in these discussions by the 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, and to bring together all members of the NBA community—current and former players, league and team officials, business partners and fans. 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-Star festivities in Charlotte in the climate created by HB2.”

Now that the NBA has moved its event, will other sports follow? The impact of the NBA move could have a domino effect with other sports moving or cancelling events.

http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/17121489/acc-championship-game-future-charlotte-affected-nba-all-star-game-decision-commissioner-john-swofford-says">Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford said his organization, which holds its football championship in Charlotte, will revisit the issue in October.

NASCAR will hold a sprint cup race in Charlotte in May 2017, and the PGA Championship is scheduled to take place there in August of next year. The http://espn.go.com/golf/story/_/id/17122360/pga-america-plans-keep-2017-pga-championship-quail-hollow-club-north-carolina-deside-hb2">professional golf organization released a statement on the status of its tournament venue earlier today, July 22.

"Since the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte is a private facility not subject to all of the provisions of HB2, at the 2017 PGA Championship, we plan to allow spectators to use the restroom that conforms with their gender identity or gender expression,” the statement read. “As we look to future events, our willingness to consider coming back to the State of North Carolina will be severely impacted unless HB2 is overturned."

The http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/17125912/ncaa-sends-questionnaire-evaluate-anti-discrimination-policies-host-cities">NCAA is now sending out questionnaires to potential host cities to ask how they would protect athletes and fans from discrimination. Cities must identify any local anti-discrimination laws in the questionnaires. The NCAA will then review the information to determine if these locations can remain hosts for events.

The questionnaires might not bode well for Greensboro, N.C., or Charlotte, which are already scheduled to host college-basketball tournaments in 2017 and 2018.

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