In early September, the NCAA announced it would not be holding the first two rounds of the 2017 March Madness Tournament in North Carolina due its controversial bathroom law. The bathroom law, which was implemented earlier this year, requires that individuals use the public bathrooms that match the gender listed on their birth certificate.
Many sports associations, and specifically the NCAA, have taken a stand to protect the beliefs of the transgender individuals greatly offended by this law and refused to hold events in North Carolina.
After the NCAA’s announcement, U.S. Senator Charles Schumer placed a bid with the NCAA suggesting that the North Carolina’s games be relocated to Albany, New York. Not only does Senator Schumer believe New York’s Times Union Center in Albany would be a “slam-dunk” relocation site, but he also believes this move would show New York is a “national leader in civil rights.”
The NCAA plans to make a decision on the relocation site by October 7.