Athlete activists and activist groups have joined in an effort to force Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) to boycott the state of Georgia after the state government passed an election reform bill.
The Masters is scheduled to be held in Augusta, Georgia, in August. The MLB All-Star Game is scheduled to take place in July. However, several different activist groups are doing their best to prevent either event from taking place after Georgia passed a voter reform law that will make it harder for Democrats to steal elections.
As Breitbart Warner Todd Huston reports, “The new law was praised by Heritage Action Executive Director Jessica Anderson, who said, ‘Reforms to make voter ID requirements and early voting access more consistent statewide, modernize the state’s voting rolls, and ensure robust oversight of voting and elections will protect Georgia’s votes and make the state a model for the rest of the country.’”
MLB Players Association (MLBPA) President Tony Clark has already signaled a willingness to hold talks on moving the All-Star Game out of Georgia.
“Players are very much aware” of the Georgia bill, Clark told the Boston Globe. “As it relates to the All-Star Game, we have not had a conversation with the league on that issue – if there is an opportunity to, we would look forward to having that conversation.”
The National Black Justice Coalition has reminded MLB and the PGA of their commitment to address “racial inequities.”
“The PGA Tour and Masters Tournament have both made commitments to help diversify golf and address racial inequities in this country – and we expect them to not only speak out against Georgia’s new racist voter suppression law – but to also take action,” the NBJC said.
As Huston reports:
If Major League Baseball removes the All-Star Game from Georgia, it would not be the first time that a professional sports league punished a state for its politics. In 2017 the NBA pulled its All-Star Game from the state of North Carolina when that state passed a law preventing biological men from using female restrooms. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver demanded that the state reverse the law — which it did not do — and then moved the game to New Orleans when the state refused to comply.
The PGA and MLB have yet to say whether they plan to cancel the events.
