Will Johan Santana be stopped and searched and asked for his papers as he walks the streets of Phoenix? Are Jose Reyes, K-Rod and Jenrry Mejia safe in public in the state of Arizona? The best clutch power hitter on the New York Mets thinks it’s a problem – and Rod Barajas is one of a growing number of Major Leaguers taking a stance against Arizona’s hateful racial profiling law.
And the campaigns are just beginning – it’s become a real “flash cause.” The blowback over Arizona’s strict new anti-immigrant legislation is firing up protest on Facebook and Twitter – and the target of opportunity for activists is the country’s National Pastime. Online organizers – and Major League players themselves – are putting the heat on Major League Baseball and Commissioner Bud Selig to boycott Arizona as the host for the 2011 All Star Game and the site of a large portion of spring training facilities unless the state overturns the controversial new law, which makes it a state crime to be in Arizona without proper documents and requires local police to check the legal status of suspected undocumented immigrants. One campaign is using baseball card images of popular stars like Mariano Rivera and Albert Pujols with the word “suspect” stamped in red across their pictures.
That particular campaign – Move The Game – is run by Presente.org, a Latino-led online organizing initiative, which is dedicated to “an end to immigration policies that exploit workers and tear apart families.” And there are others: “10,000 Mets Fans for Boycotting Arizona’s 2011 All-Star Game” is a Facebook group sponsored by the Working Families Party in New York (there’s a Yankees version as well) – it already has 286 members. The biggest group (also led by Presente) – 1 MILLION Strong AGAINST the Arizona Immigration Law SB1070 – has already signed up 1.3 million people on Facebook.
Meanwhile, the Major League Players Association has strongly condemned the law and a wide range of players, including the Mets’ Barajas, Padres closer Heath Bell, Oriole shortstop Cesar Izturis, White Sox manager Ozzie Gullen, and Padres first-baseman Adrian Gonzalez have spoken out strongly. Last week, the opening game in a weekend series between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Chicago Cubs included a rousing street protest outside (the D’backs may face protests around the league, even through team ownership does not support the legislation). And on the hardcourt, the Phoenix Suns planned a Cinco de Mayo playoff protest against their home state law, wearing jerseys that read “Los Suns” in a show of support for the Latino community.
There’s a great discussion of the issue on the most reason episode of MetGrrl’s podcast you should listen to. The consensus there is that the law is entirely unreasonable and dangerous; the only debate is over MLB’s role in pushing for change.
Well, Mets fans – and you Yankee fans of goodwill – we have a chance to make some righteous noise against prejudice and hate. As I wrote a few days ago, the Arizona Diamondbacks arrive at Citi Field for the first time this season for a Friday night game on July 30th. If the law is still on the books, it’d be a good time to make our voices heard – in a respectful and peaceful manner before the game. Nothing against the D’backs as a team (though we hope they’re swept by the Metties) but they’re a powerful traveling symbol of their home state. The Suns get this, and the D’backs should. And next year’s All Star Game is a real pressure point against the reactionary politicians.
Some folks argue that baseball and politics shouldn’t mix – and it’s worth debating – but I think they always have. We’ve got this rotunda named for Jackie Robinson – let’s put his words into practice.
Related articles by Zemanta
- Baseball All-Star Adrian Gonzalez Says He May Boycott Next Year’s All-Star Game Over AZ Law (thinkprogress.org)
- Baseball and Politics (metspolice.com)
- Suns become ‘Los Suns’ to protest immigration law (thestar.com)
- All Hail Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns for their take on Arizona’s SB 1070:”I think the law is very misguided.” (crooksandliars.com)
- MLB players begin to speak out against Arizona’s police-state immigration law (crooksandliars.com)
- A Cinco de Mayo NBA Humanity Lesson for the People of Arizona (pamil-visions.net)
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