Senator Bob Menendez, the only Latino in the US Senate, sent a letter yesterday urging the Major League Baseball Players’ Association to boycott the 2011 all-star game that is scheduled to be played in Arizona because of the state’s controversial new immigration law.
Menendez wrote to the Executive Director Michael Weiner: “I ask that you consider boycotting the All Star Game in Arizona until SB1070 is repealed or the League decides to move the game to an alternate location.”
“The Arizona law is offensive to Hispanics and all Americans because it codifies racial profiling into law by requiring police to question anyone who appears to be in the country illegally,” said Menendez.
According to the New Jersey senator, 27 percent of all major league baseball players are of Hispanic descent and 28 percent are foreign-born.
He added, “These players come to the United States legally and should not be subjected to the humiliation and harassment that SB1070 would inflict. Imagine if your players and their families were subjected to interrogation by law enforcement, simply because they look a certain way.”
The Senator’s letter adds his voice to the chorus of outcries from elected, civic and community leaders who are opposing the recently passed law which would allow police to stop individuals they suspect of being illegal.
Last week, lead by the National Council of La Raza, nineteen groups and labor unions called for a boycott of Arizona.
The Major League Baseball Players’ Association was one of the first organizations that issued a condemnation of the law and on Cinco de Mayor, NBA team, the Phoenix Suns, changed their jerseys to read “Los Suns” in a statement of solidarity with the Latino community.
Menendez joined Senate Democratic leadership recently in unveiling an outline of a proposal for a comprehensive immigration bill which they hope to tackle this year.
I hope that every American, regardless of where he lives, will stop and examine his conscience about this and other related incidents. This Nation was founded by men of many nations and backgrounds. It was founded on the principle that all men are created equal, and that the rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened. All of us ought to have the right to be treated as he would wish to be treated, as one would wish his children to be treated, but this is not the case.
I know the proponents of this law say that the majority approves of this law, but the majority is not always right. Would women or non-whites have the vote if we listen to the majority of the day, would the non-whites have equal rights (and equal access to churches, restaurants, hotels, retail stores, schools, colleges and yes water fountains) if we listen to the majority of the day? We all know the answer, a resounding, NO!
Today we are committed to a worldwide struggle to promote and protect the rights of all who wish to be free. In a time of domestic crisis men of good will and generosity should be able to unite regardless of party or politics and do what is right, not what is just popular with the majority. Some men comprehend discrimination by never have experiencing it in their lives, but the majority will only understand after it happens to them.