Sticking with the sports theme, Super Bowl XXVII was played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena rather than at the Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe because black NFL players refused to play the game in a state that refused to honor Martin Luther King Jr. with a state holiday. Flash forward twenty years and history is repeating itself. This time it is Latino baseball players who are promising to boycott next year’s All-Star Game in Phoenix if Arizona’s new immigration law remains in force.
I am going to assume that the law will not be rescinded, although it may be invalidated by the courts, as the Department of Justice has filed suit against it.
Attorney General Eric Holder said the lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Phoenix, came after extensive consultation with law enforcement officials and civil rights groups who oppose the law.
“Setting immigration policy and enforcing immigration laws is a national responsibility,” Holder said. “Seeking to address the issue through a patchwork of state laws will only create more problems than it solves.”
If the case remains unresolved and the law remains in place, Arizona’s loss of the All-Star Game is going to be a rather big news story, and it will really cement the Latino community (acting in solidarity) against the Republican Party on a national level.
I think the courts will probably strike the law down, but I can’t say when they’ll get to it. It’s something to watch, because if Latinos start voting with the same partisan preference as blacks, the Republicans will never be able to compete on a national level and will non-competitive in an increasing number of states.
I think the leaders of the GOP understand this, but they’re either focused on the short-term advantage (Arizona’s law is quite popular overall) or they’re just too scared of their own base to stand up to them.
