A NEW ERA: HERE COME LOS SUNS!

While at Kent State University over the weekend, we got into conversation with a dude from the UK currently living in the States about how the boneheads out there expolited sports for political gain. That makes sense. Where you find sports, you will find the working class that you are trying to appeal to. Our friend asked us if that is the same for the boneheads here. We had to say no, and the reason for that is simple: Sports is almost completely dominated by people of color, and although conservatives still take in their game it just doesn’t make sense to promote the superiority of the white race when you enjoy watching someone black or Hispanic trounce a white person in competition. But let’s be real – those against racism have all the juice in the world! It’s the reason why Cincinnati Reds owner Marge Schott and Atlanta Braves pitcher Joe Rocker caught so much hell back in the day. It’s the reason why talk show host Rush Limbaugh doesn’t own part of an NFL franchise right now. And it is why a lot of political pressure is being heaped upon the major sports teams and players not to patronize Arizona – not to mention why the first sports teams to take a public stand against the bill are from Arizona!

Dave Zirin

A battle has been joined for the very soul of Arizona. On one side, there are the Minutemen, the craven state Republican lawmakers, Governor Jan Brewer, and the utterly unprincipled John McCain, all supporting SB 1070, a law that codifies racial profiling of immigrants in the state. On the other are the Sun Belt residents who protested on May 1st, the students who have engaged in walkouts, and the politicians and civic leaders calling for an economic boycott of their own state.

This battle has also been joined in the world of sports. On one side is Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Owned by state Republican moneyman Ken Kendrick, the team has drawn protestors to parks around the country. On the other side, we now have the Phoenix Suns. On Tuesday the news came forth that on Cinco de Mayo, the team would be wearing jerseys that say simply Los Suns. Team owner Robert Sarver said, after talking to the team, that this will be an act of sartorial solidarity against the bill. Their opponent, the San Antonio Spurs have made clear that they support the gesture.

In a statement released by the team, Sarver said, “The frustration with the federal government’s failure to deal with the issue of illegal immigration resulted in passage of a flawed state law. However intended, the result of passing this law is that our basic principles of equal rights and protection under the law are being called into question, and Arizona’s already struggling economy will suffer even further setbacks at a time when the state can ill-afford them.”

He followed up the statement by saying to reporters, “I looked around our plane and looked at our players and the diversity in our organization. I thought we need to go on record that we honor our diversity in our team, in the NBA and we need to show support for that. As for the political part of that, that’s my statement. There are times you need to stand up and be heard. I respect people’s views on the other side but I just felt it was appropriate for me to stand up and make a statement.”

After Sarver spoke out, the team chimed in against the passage and signing of SB 1070. Two-time MVP point guard Steve Nash, who in 2003 became the first athlete to go on record against the Iraq war said, “I think the law is very misguided. I think it is unfortunately to the detriment to our society and our civil liberties and I think it is very important for us to stand up for things we believe in. I think the law obviously can target opportunities for racial profiling. Things we don’t want to see and don’t need to see in 2010.”

All-Star power forward Amare Stoudamire, who has no political reputation, also chimed in saying, “It’s going to be great to wear Los Suns to let the Latin community know we’re behind them 100%.”

After the story broke, I spoke on the phone with NBA Players Association Presdient Billy Hunter about the Suns audacious move.

“It’s phenomenal,” he said. “This makes it clear to me that it’s a new era. It’s a new time. Athletes can tend to be apolitical and isolated from the issues that impact the general public. But now here come the Suns. I would have expected nothing less from Steve Nash who has been out front on a number of issues over the years. I also want to recognize Amare. I know how strident Amare can be and I’m really impressed to see him channel his intensity. It shows a tremendous growth and maturity on his part. And I have to applaud Bob Sarver because he is really taking a risk by putting himself out there. I commend them. I just think it’s super.”

He said that the union would have their own statement out by the end of the week.

This kind of political intervention by a sports team is without precedent and now every athlete and every team has an opening to stand up and be heard. Because when it’s all said and done, this isn’t just a battle for the soul of Arizona. It’s a battle for the soul of the United States. Here come the Suns indeed.

[Dave Zirin is the author of the forthcoming “Bad Sports: How Owners are Ruining the Games we Love” (Scribner) Receive his column every week by emailing [email protected]. Contact him at [email protected].]

Steve Nash Calls Arizona Immigration Bill “Very Misguided”

In an extremely bold move, the Phoenix Suns as an organization made a strong political statement in opposition to the recent Arizona immigration bill.

Discussions on taking action began last week after the bill passed, with an idea that came from Robert Sarver, Managing Partner of the Phoenix Suns.

According to Steve Kerr, the team discussed it internally before going to the league for approval to both wear the ‘Los Suns’ jerseys, but also to come out publicly in this way.

Kerr said both the NBA and the San Antonio Spurs were fully supportive of the Suns move.

Ultimately, the decision was left up to the players, but in a locker room led by Steve Nash, it is no surprise how that turned out.

“I think the law is very misguided. I think it is unfortunately to the detriment of our society and our civil liberties and I think it is very important for us to stand up for things we believe in,” Nash said of the bill. “I think the law obviously can target opportunities for racial profiling. Things we don’t want to see and don’t need to see in 2010.”

Amare Stoudemire and Alvin Gentry also expressed their support for the decision with more of a focus on supporting their neighbors. “It’s going to be great to wear Los Suns to let the Latin community know we’re behind them 100%,” Stoudemire said.

There’s no question that this public move will receive considerable backlash in this state and likely among many Suns fans and perhaps even sponsors.

Steve Kerr tried to walk the line between the political implications by talking about the move as a way for an organization that is in the public eye to push the discussion.

“We want to celebrate the diversity that exists in our state and exists in the NBA. We know what’s going on and we don’t agree with the law itself,” Kerr said.

Steven Nash was well aware of the perception the recent bill created for Arizona and that seemed to play a role in his decision, “It doesn’t feel good to have people around the world and around the country look at our state as less than equal, less than fair. As proud citizen of this state, I want us to be held be held in the highest esteem. I think we ha
ve a lot of great attributes and a lot of great people and I think we need to be very cautious in how we respect our civil liberties and the tone we’re setting and the precedents we’re setting moving forward.”

Star-divide

[Note by Seth Pollack, 05/04/10 4:08 PM MST ]

It would seem over the last few hours while I was in a meeting, a lot of discussion has taken place. That’s for keeping it civil. I actually had this exact debate with my neighbor a few days ago. He works in the construction industry and had a lot of insight on this first hand. He was in favor of the new bill and I of course was opposed.

On thing we were able to agree on was that something needed to be done to provide a legal process to meet the labor needs. We went round and round to get there but ultimately found common ground.

Hopefully, this is the kind of thing that can happen as a result of the Suns decision. It’s exactly what Steve Kerr seemed to be hoping for.

As for actually basketball stuff – there’s plenty of that coming later tonight. Don’t worry, we won’t belabor this topic.