A gut-check for the NCAA and others.

I just read the new North Carolina “bathroom” bill, HB 142.  HB 142 purports to repeal the infamous HB 2.  The text is contained in this from CNN:

http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/30/politics/north-carolina-hb2-agreement/

I was hoping that the statements by LGBT advocates were hyperbole, that maybe the repeal did advance the ball on LGBT rights, at least to some worthwhile degree.  But, sadly, the advocates are absolutely right. 

It is true that the original HB 2 not only barred localities from enacting protections for LGBT people, but also barred localities from setting a local minimum wage, regulating child labor, or making certain regulations for city workers.  And today’s repeal of HB2 does repeal those provisions.  But the only thing it does with respect to LGBT protections is to leave the status quo as it is – except that the prohibition on local ordinances protecting LGBT people is no longer permanent, but expires in December 2020, during which time the state legislature retains control of decisions as to restroom use. 

So the only difference between HB 2 and HB 142 is that under the HB 142, the bar on local ordinances expires in about three years.  For the next three years, the “lawful” discrimination against LGBT people continues, even if the local elected officials and populations do not want it to continue.  And, of course, the gerrymandered North Carolina state legislature could simply continue that state of affairs upon expiration of HB 142.  This change, then, is no change.  How is this progress, that would warrant the NCAA and the other organizations that have boycotted North Carolina because of the anti-LGBT impact of HB 2 to change course?  It is not progress, and the boycotts should continue. HB 142 is nothing more than a transparent fig leaf.  Or to put it more bluntly in the current colloquial language, to say it remedies the ills recognized by the NCAA, et al. would be “fake news.”

This is a gut-check for the NCAA and the other boycotting organizations.  Will they pretend that something has changed and go back to business as usual? Or will they continue to stand on principal.