On behalf of the San Francisco 49ers, CEO Jed York gifted $75,000 to Equality North Carolina on Tuesday.
York made the donation in support of the LGBT rights advocacy group and its effort to repeal House Bill 2, which bans transgender people in North Carolina from using the restroom of their choice.
York, in Charlotte this week for the NFL owners meetings, also issued the below statement:
"The San Francisco 49ers are deeply concerned about North Carolina's recently-enacted House Bill 2, which overturned protections for LGBT people and sanctioned discrimination across the state. HB 2 does not reflect the values of our organization, of our country, or the majority of North Carolinians.
"We firmly believe that discriminatory laws such as HB 2 are bad for our employees, bad for our fans, and bad for business. We believe that HB 2 will make it far more challenging for businesses across the state to recruit and retain the nation's best and brightest workers and attract the most talented students from across the country. It will also diminish the state's draw as a destination for sporting events, tourism and conventions, and new business activity.
"Discrimination is wrong, and we believe it has no place in North Carolina or anywhere in our country. As an organization that prides ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming to all, we strongly urge Governor Pat McCrory and the leadership of North Carolina's legislature to repeal this law in the current legislative session."
