NCAA: 'Religious freedom' law creates concern for future events

NCAA President Mark Emmert expressed concern Thursday about Indiana's "religious freedom" law, saying the Indianapolis-based group would examine "how it might affect future events as well as our workforce."

"The NCAA national office and our members are deeply committed to providing an inclusive environment for all our events," Emmert's statement said. "We are especially concerned about how this legislation could affect our student-athletes and employees.

"We will work diligently to assure student-athletes competing in, and visitors attending, next week's men's Final Four in Indianapolis are not impacted negatively by this bill.

"Moving forward, we intend to closely examine the implications of this bill and how it might affect future events as well as our workforce."

After this year's men's Final Four, April 4 and 6 at Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis is scheduled to be host for the women's Final Four next year. Indy has been awarded early-round men's tournament games in 2017 and the men's Final Four in 2021.

The NCAA has a lease until 2060 on its headquarters building and pays $1 per year in rent.

Wednesday night, Mark Lewis, NCAA senior vice president of championships, told The Indianapolis Star that he had not heard from member schools, Final Four sponsors or artists performing at the March Madness Music Festival about the law.

"Nobody has raised it with us, but I'm trying not to send the message that it means everybody (thinks) it's OK," Lewis said. "I know this is a hot issue, but nobody has raised it to us yet. I don't know if that will change."

Athlete Ally, which describes itself as "an organization activating athletes to support LGBT inclusion and equality," criticized the law Thursday.

The group is planning a news conference April 3, a day before the Final Four, in front of the NCAA Hall of Champions.

"The governor of Indiana has codified discrimination in a place that's renowned for its leadership in athletics," said Hudson Taylor, executive director of Athlete Ally. "Now, the same state that's home to the NCAA, the Final Four and next year's NFL Combine is a place where you can be turned away for being gay."

The group is using the hashtag #Final4Fairness and an online petition to promote its position.

"It's time for athletes and sports fans to come together to tell Indiana it can't turn its back on inclusion on the court or under the law," the site says.

An online petition at change.org wants to move the Big Ten Football Championship out of Indianapolis. The game is scheduled to be played at Lucas Oil Stadium through 2021.

The national Fellowship of Christian Athletes declined comment "at this time." The group's website says it works to find people who will "use the powerful medium of athletics to impact the world for Jesus Christ."

The director of the Indiana Fellowship of Christian Athletes also declined comment.

Athletes in Action, a Christian group whose website says it is "striving to see Christ-followers on every team, every sport, every nation," did not immediately respond to a phone message and an email.

The Indiana Sports Corp, which manages the host committee for the Final Four, issued a statement from President Ryan Vaughn.

"Hoosier hospitality has never been defined by legislation," the statement said. "It starts in the hearts and in the actions of our volunteers and ambassadors. We anticipate that same welcoming atmosphere moving forward toward not only guests to our great state, but to one another."

The NCAA has a history of using its power to take stances on social issues.

Last year, the NCAA opposed a proposed amendment to the Indiana Constitution that said marriage could only be between one man and one woman.

In 2005, the NCAA ruled that 19 member schools had mascots that were hostile or abusive and banned those schools from playing host to NCAA championships or using the mascot imagery in NCAA events.

Some schools successfully appealed the ruling.

In 2002, the NCAA banned South Carolina from hosting championship events --- when sites are predetermined --- because the Confederate flag flies at the Statehouse. NCAA championship events in South Carolina are allowed when sites are not predetermined.

Call Star reporter Mark Alesia at (317) 444-6311. Follow him on Twitter: @markalesia.