NCAA ‘Very Pleased’ Indiana Legislators Amending RFRA

The NCAA’s president says he’s “very pleased” that Indiana lawmakers tinker with the Religious Freedom Restoration Act passed last week.

“We are very pleased the Indiana legislature is taking action to amend Senate Bill 101 so that it is clear individuals cannot be discriminated against,” a statement by Mark Emmert contends. “NCAA core values call for an environment that is inclusive and non-discriminatory for our student-athletes, membership, fans, staff and their families. We look forward to the amended bill being passed quickly and signed into law expeditiously by the governor.”

After an outcry from gay and lesbian activists, legislators look to protect homosexuals, and leave religious businessmen unprotected, in a “fix” to the controversial but common law. Congress and the legislatures of nineteen other states have all passed similar bills.

Indianapolis serves as the home of the NCAA. The 110-year-old collegiate athletics governing body hosts its men’s basketball tournament’s Final Four at Lucas Oil Stadium this weekend. They return next year with the women’s Final Four and return again with the men’s Final Four in 2021.

The NCAA had earlier released a statement by the head coaches of Michigan State, Duke, Kentucky, and Wisconsin supporting their position. The coaches vying for supremacy above all other teams maintained that “college basketball plays an important role in diversity, equality, fairness and inclusion, and will continue to do so in the future.”