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Vermont Axes Women's Basketball Game Against North Carolina Over LGBT Bathroom Law

BURLINGTON, Vt. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The University of Vermont has canceled its women's basketball team's upcoming game against North Carolina over a state law that governs transgender bathroom access.

The Catamounts were originally scheduled to face the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill on Dec. 28.

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UVM athletic director Jeff Schulman said the cancellation was a result of concerns over the law, which requires transgender people to use the restrooms in schools and many public buildings that correspond to the sex on their birth certificates, rather than their gender identity.

"We strive very hard to create an inclusive climate for our students and staff in which they all can feel safe, respected, and valued. It would be hard to fulfill these obligations while competing in a state with this law, which is contrary to our values as an athletic department and university," Schulman said in a statement quoted by the Burlington Free Press.

Schulman said the law discriminates against the transgender community. UVM and UNC had agreed to the nonconference game on March 29, less than a week after the law went into effect.

In July, the State Univerity of New York at Albany announced that it wouldn't face off against Duke because of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's executive order banning publicly funded, non-essential travel to North Carolina, which was put in place following the state's ruling on the hotly-debated transgender bathroom law.

The North Carolina law signed earlier this year by Gov. Pat McCrory — known as HB2 — requires transgender people to use restrooms corresponding to the sex on their birth certificates. It also excludes gender identity and sexual orientation from statewide anti-discrimination protections.

(TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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