A TALE OF TWO CITIES: NYC & DC PROTEST MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL

Major League Baseball Chairman Bud Selig has praised the diversity of his league in the past, so we hope he become a little more proactive than he is known to get with this controversy over Arizona’s “Papers Please” law heating up more and more. We worked in conjunction with Lady Liberty’s Lamp to produce this video about the rallies on July 8 that took place in Washington, DC and New York City calling for Selig to move the 2011 All-Star Game out of Phoenix, Arizona. Major League Baseball has been zeroed in on because of the scores of Latino players that make up today’s game, and that’s not a political tactic.Arizona’s government has made it clear that Latinos are not safe in their state, it’s that simple. And we should not be living like that in 2010, it’s that simple also. Move the damn game.

One People’s Project and Lady Liberty’s Lamp

Two rallies took place on July 8 in separate cities, Washington, DC and New York City demanding that the organization move the 2011 All-Star Game out of Phoenix, Arizona, respecting a boycott of the state that was called after Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed SB1070 – also know as the “Papers Please” bill – into law. This was the latest in a series of rallies and demonstrations that have taken place in recent weeks.

About 200 people stood outside the headquarters of Major League Baseball on Park Ave in New York voicing their concerns about the law. The rally sponsored by New York Immigration Coalition, brought out various organizations from the city to Major League Baseball’s headquarters on Park Ave. as well as local political leaders such as Reps. Charlie Rangel and Jose Serrano. About fifteen counter-demonstrators were also there to support Arizona’s new law. They were represented by New Yorkers for Immigration Control and Enforcement (NYICE), with some of that number coming from as far out as Buffalo. A number of them wore T-Shirts supporting a longshot New York Gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino, who recently seen press for sending out emails that were seen as racist sexist and promoting bestiality.

Police kept the two camps separate via barricades, but from time to time individuals would step onto the sidewalk in front of them and walk over and videotape the other side or engage in dialogue that would range for cordial debates to simple antagonism and insults.

In Washington, DC, about thirty activists conducted civil disobedience in the offices of Baker-Hostetler, a law firm and lobbying organization representing Major League Baseball. Although there were some minor confrontations, no arrests were made and the demo was over within a few minutes.

These were not the only rallies against SB1070 over the past week. On Saturday, Gov. Brewer saw protests as she attended the annual National Governors Association meeting in Boston.

There are other rallies planned for the near future. The Arizona Diamondbacks have been seeing demonstrations in every city they have played in since the law was passed. Meanwhile, unless blocked in court, SB1070 is to go into effect on July 29.

CONTACT MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL

You can fill out the contact form on the MLB website, or you can write them a letter at

The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball
Allan H. (Bud) Selig, Commissioner
245 Park Avenue, 31st Floor
New York, NY 10167