NEW ORLEANS – The NBA has decided to hold the 2017 All-Star Game in New Orleans.
New Orleans replaces Charlotte, which was set to host the game until the NBA decided last month that it wouldn't hold its marquee, mid-season event in North Carolina because of a state law that limits anti-discrimination protections for lesbian, gay and transgender people.
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Unlike several other Southern states, Louisiana has not been swept up in legislative efforts to pass laws similar to that in North Carolina -- a fact Gov. John Bel Edwards touted while lobbying the NBA to bring its All-Star weekend to New Orleans for a third time.
"By moving the 2017 All-Star Game to New Orleans, the NBA and Commissioner Adam Silver have sent a clear message to lawmakers in North Carolina and across the country that discrimination against LGBTQ people has consequences and will not be tolerated," said Chad Griffin, president of Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBTQ civil rights organization.
New Orleans has non-discrimination protections that explicitly protect the LGBTQ community from discrimination in public and private employment, housing and public accommodations.