PHOENIX, AZ – In the midst of their playoff run, one NBA team is finding time to make a political statement!
The political ramifications of the new immigration law is finding critics everywhere. One new critic is the Phoenix Suns organization and they will make their opinion known during Tuesday night’s playoff game. The team will be donning their “Los Suns” jerseys, turning their once marketing gimmick into a political statement.
The “Los Suns” jerseys have been used as part of the NBA’s “Noche Latina” program. The decision to wear the jerseys, made by Suns owner Robert Sarver, takes a shot at Arizona’s controversial immigration enforcement law known as Senate Bill 1070.
The law makes it a misdemeanor for immigrants to be in Arizona without proper documents and allows police officers to request proof of status if there is a “reasonable suspicion” that the person is in the country illegally.
“Our players and organization felt that wearing our ‘Los Suns’ jerseys on Cinco de Mayo was a way for our team and our organization to honor our Latino community and the diversity of our league, the State of Arizona, and our nation,” Sarver said in a news release for the team.
That was more of an intro and Sarver focused in on the politicians on the next paragraph.
“The frustration with the federal government’s failure to deal with the issue of illegal immigrants 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 ever further setbacks at a time when the state can ill-afford them,” Sarver added.
The fallout from the new law is building by the day. Arizona may have gotten itself in some hot water and they will not hear the end of it. Catch “Los Suns” as they take on the San Antonio Spurs tonight.
I hope the players wearing the jerseys stay away from criticizing the law specifically unless they have read it–which I doubt any of them have.
Guess I won't be watching any more Phoenix Suns games ever again!
Imagine that, they are going to protest a law that identifies something "illegal" as a misdemeanor.