On Sunday, the Braves hosted the Civil Rights Game. While there are several possible hypocrisies involved with the Atlanta Braves hosting such an event, the main issue was the passing of a bill in Georgia two days prior that grants law enforcement the right to demand immigration papers from any person they suspect of being illegally in the country. You know, just like they did in Arizona.
Carlos Santana Immigration Remarks, And Bud Selig’s Disappearing Act
So, with that in mind, no one should be all that shocked that the Latino they invited to the festivities -- musician Carlos Santana -- had a few remarks to make about the bill: “The people of Arizona and the people of Atlanta, Georgia, you should be ashamed of yourselves.” That was on stage in front of the fans. As you might imagine, he was booed. Afterward, he had more to say in a press conference:
“This law is not correct. It’s a cruel law, actually, This is about fear. Stop shucking and jiving. People are afraid we’re going to steal your job. No we aren’t. You’re not going to change sheets and clean toilets. I would invite all Latin people to do nothing for about two weeks so you can see who really, really is running the economy. Who cleans the sheets? Who cleans the toilets? Who babysits? I am here to give voice to the invisible.”
Yeah, so, probably not what Bud Selig had in mind when the decision was made to invite Santana to the game. Of course, Selig wasn’t around for most of this, as The Nation’s Dave Zirin notes in his scathing response to the event:
Where was Bud Selig during all this drama? It seems that Selig slunk out of a stadium backdoor in the 5th inning. If there is one thing Bud has become an expert at, it’s ducking his head when the issues of immigration, civil rights, and Major League Baseball collide. If Selig really gave a damn about Civil Rights, he would heed the words of Carlos Santana. He would move the 2011 All-Star Game out of Arizona. He would recognize that the sport of Jackie Robinson, Roberto Clemente and Curt Flood has an obligation to stand for something more than just using their memory to cover up the injustices of the present. If Bud Selig cared about Civil Rights, he would above all else, have to develop something resembling a spine. But if Bud is altogether unfamiliar with the concept of courage, he received one hell of an object lesson from Carlos Santana.
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