# Can NCAA ban states from athletic competitions if they pass anti-gay legislation? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [March 24, 2016, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999 "2016-03-24T00:39:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/1 "2016-03-24T00:39:04Z")
Just wondered if this was within the NCAA’s ability or not? Is (for example) Kanas passes this mess below can NCAA shut out Kansas high schools and colleges from athletic competition with other states? [‘Spot A Penis, Win A Prize’ Bill LITERALLY Puts A Bounty On Transgender People](http://winningdemocrats.com/spot-a-penis-win-a-prize-bill-literally-puts-a-bounty-on-transgender-people/) > [@](#): > > Transgender students in Kansas should be pissed at the state legislature right now. Lawmakers just introduced two new bills that would make their life even more of a living hell. One of these bills actually provides financial incentives to students that call them out. > > Schools Could Be Sued for $2,500 Every Time a Trans Student Entered a Bathroom > > SB 513 is the most disgusting of the two bills. It would actually give students that were in the bathroom with a trans student the right to sue the school for $2,500 in damages. > > “Statutory damages in an amount of $2,500 for each instance in which the aggrieved student encountered a person of the opposite sex while accessing a public school or postsecondary educational institution student restroom, locker room or shower room designated for use by the aggrieved student’s sex.” > > If that isn’t ridiculous enough, the bill gives a four-year statute of limitations for such a lawsuit. What is to stop someone from filing a frivolous lawsuit three years after graduating to pay off their credit card debt? ---
**Author:** ![Personal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Personal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Personal)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/2 "2016-03-24T00:55:41Z")
I don’t think the NCAA has any jurisdiction over high schools. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/3 "2016-03-24T01:00:53Z")
It would be dicey for the NCAA to ban colleges from competing due to laws passed in their home state. For one, it’s not fair to the athletes, who may even oppose the law. What it can do, however, is decide not to hold any of its tournament games in that state. ---
**Author:** ![jsquire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@jsquire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsquire)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/4 "2016-03-24T01:03:24Z")
AFAIK, no. But they can and have banned states from hosting postseason competition. South Carolina was such a pariah state for nearly 15 years until last summer when the Confederate flag was removed from the Capitol grounds. The NFL, of all organizations, has expressed disapproval of Georgia’s “religious liberty” bill, and if Atlanta had any interest in hosting a Super Bowl, they won’t get it if the bill passes. Remember, the NFL made good on a threat to pull the 1990 Super Bowl from Arizona when they wouldn’t approve MLK Day as a holiday. ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/5 "2016-03-24T01:09:17Z")
> [@jsquire](#): > > AFAIK, no. But they can and have banned states from hosting postseason competition. South Carolina was such a pariah state for nearly 15 years until last summer when the Confederate flag was removed from the Capitol grounds. You may be correct in principle, but Clemson, Columbia and Mrytle Beach, SC have all hosted NCAA D1 Baseball Regional and Super Regional tournaments. ---
**Author:** ![jsquire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@jsquire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsquire)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/6 "2016-03-24T01:34:05Z")
As always, I suppose the devil is in the details. Apparently the exact language was a “boycott on predetermined championship sites” in South Carolina. > **[NCAA lifts ban on holding championships in South Carolina](https://www.ncaa.com/news/ncaa/article/2015-07-10/ncaa-lifts-ban-holding-championships-south-carolina)** > > Possibility has become reality for South Carolina. > > Thursday's bill signaling the end of the Confederate flag's stay on the Statehouse grounds has prompted the NCAA to lift its boycott on predetermined championship sites in the state. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/7 "2016-03-24T01:43:26Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > It would be dicey for the NCAA to ban colleges from competing due to laws passed in their home state. For one, it’s not fair to the athletes, who may even oppose the law. > > What it can do, however, is decide not to hold any of its tournament games in that state. why is that? isn’t the NCAA a private organization? can’t they exclude whoever they want? ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/8 "2016-03-24T02:35:46Z")
Wiki says it is a non-profit Association. I call that a “private” organization, which can adapt any rules it pleases for any reason or no reason. It seems to do a “We recognize your school as a member of ‘Division X’. You can vote on rule changes for ‘Division X’” as far a rule-making goes. That is subject to change of course, but how would such a change be enacted? ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/9 "2016-03-24T12:27:11Z")
Relocated to the Game Room from IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![tim-n-va](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim-n-va/32/3001_2.png) [@tim-n-va](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim-n-va)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/10 "2016-03-24T12:59:43Z")
> [@jsquire](#): > > AFAIK, no. But they can and have banned states from hosting postseason competition. South Carolina was such a pariah state for nearly 15 years until last summer when the Confederate flag was removed from the Capitol grounds. The NFL, of all organizations, has expressed disapproval of Georgia’s “religious liberty” bill, and if Atlanta had any interest in hosting a Super Bowl, they won’t get it if the bill passes. Remember, the NFL made good on a threat to pull the 1990 Super Bowl from Arizona when they wouldn’t approve MLK Day as a holiday. Slight hijack: IIRC, reporters called the NFL offices on MLK day 1990 and asked why people were working when it was an important holiday. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/11 "2016-03-24T15:02:38Z")
> [@tim-n-va](#): > > Slight hijack: IIRC, reporters called the NFL offices on MLK day 1990 and asked why people were working when it was an important holiday. MLK day is a holiday for certain employees. I have been at my employer for over 30 years, I have never had a MLK holiday. In my state, it is a recognized holiday but for state employees only. I am sure the same reasoning applies to the NFL offices and the laws of New York. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/12 "2016-03-24T17:10:25Z")
> [@racer72](#): > > MLK day is a holiday for certain employees. I have been at my employer for over 30 years, I have never had a MLK holiday. In my state, it is a recognized holiday but for state employees only. I am sure the same reasoning applies to the NFL offices and the laws of New York. I’ve never known a reporter to let facts get in the way of a good story. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2016, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/13 "2016-03-24T20:00:09Z")
> [@racer72](#): > > MLK day is a holiday for certain employees. I have been at my employer for over 30 years, I have never had a MLK holiday. In my state, it is a recognized holiday but for state employees only. I am sure the same reasoning applies to the NFL offices and the laws of New York. But it still seems odd to act like MLK day is so important that a state must have it, but then to not honor it yourself. Sure, maybe not taking the day off, but at least do something to commemorate it. If I made a big deal about the local bar not celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, to the point that I said I would boycott them, and then someone caught me on the 17th not even wearing green, I’d think they’d be right to point that out. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2016, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/14 "2016-03-30T02:58:08Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > why is that? isn’t the NCAA a private organization? can’t they exclude whoever they want? As I said, how can you punish someone who’s fully in favor of gay rights because his state passed a law against it? Also, the NCAA is run by colleges, some of which are state colleges. That leaves the colleges involved in the decision targets for discrimination claims. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2016, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ncaa-ban-states-from-athletic-competitions-if-they-pass-anti-gay-legislation/749999/15 "2016-03-30T03:22:08Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > As I said, how can you punish someone who’s fully in favor of gay rights because his state passed a law against it? The same way Disney was ostensibly willing to punish all the pro-LGBT business owners in Georgia because of the law. Because you think that standing up against it is more important. Because you think it’s more important to not force your workers to go to a place where they can be legally discriminated against. I’m sure no one actually working at your local Chick-fil-A is anti-gay, but people have no problem boycotting it.