D.C. fans call out the Diamondbacks
By
WASHINGTON--More than 60 people held a picket of the Arizona Diamondbacks' August 15 appearance here against the Washington Nationals. Fans, activists and community groups came together to call on Major League Baseball (MLB) commissioner Bud Selig to move the 2011 All-Star Game from Phoenix in the wake of Arizona's recent passage of draconian anti-immigrant legislation.
The owner of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Ken Kendrick, is one of the largest donors to the Arizona Republican Party, which pushed the notorious SB 1070 law this spring. Casa de Maryland, an immigrant rights organization, called for the demonstration. It was the 17th such protest faced by the Diamondbacks around the country.
Chanting slogans like "Hey baseball, let's face it, Arizona is racist" in front of the main entrance to Nationals Park, the picket line held strong from noon until 1:35 p.m. when the game started. Demonstrators also draped a banner from the parking garage that read, "Bud Selig, move the All-Star Game, no SB 1070."
A large crowd came to the park to watch pitching phenom Stephen Strasburg, and as fans passed by the picket on their way in, there was a mix of reactions--some gave a thumbs up and even joined in, while a few individuals hassled the picketers.
Then, during the bottom of the fifth inning, four individuals ran onto the field to display another banner about moving the All-Star Game out of Arizona. Security guards chased them around and finally tackled some and escorted them off the field.
Meanwhile, in the center field stands, other activists unfurled a banner that read, "Bud Selig, move the All-Star Game, no SB 1070!" Those who ran onto the field were arrested, and those who displayed the banner have been banned from the park for the next 12 months.
The protest was successful at attracting wide media coverage and maintaining pressure on Major League Baseball (MLB) to take a stand against Arizona's racial profiling of immigrants, an important civil rights issue for MLB's large proportion of Latino players.
Various commentators have criticized such protests, arguing that sporting events shouldn't be "politicized," and Bud Selig himself has declined to get involved because he says it's a "political issue." But why should those who stand for justice and equality pretend that sports stands above the fray when Diamonbacks owner Kendrick maintains a close public association with Arizona's Republican Party?
A steady drumbeat of protests certainly do have the capacity to pressure Selig into taking a stand. In 1993, the National Football League (NFL) moved the Super Bowl because Arizona refused to recognize Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday as a holiday. A similar boycott effort to pressure the NFL was instrumental to the league's decision to move the game.
