>>> WELL, AS POPULAR AS BASEBALL
IS TODAY, ITS ALSO THE ORIGINAL
ALL-AMERICAN SPORT.
AND IN SOME WAYS ITS PROGRESS ON
RACIAL ISSUES PARALLELS
AMERICAS.
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL MADE A BIG
STATEMENT ON APRIL 15th, 1947,
WHEN JACKIE ROBINSON BECAME THE
FIRST BLACK PLAYER TO BREAK OUT
OF THE NEGRO LEAGUES AND
INTEGRATE THE MAJORS.
THE ONLY REASON ATLANTA EVEN HAS
A BASEBALL TEAM IS BECAUSE THE
CITY AGREED TO INTEGRATE ITS OWN
FULTON COUNTY STADIUM AS A
CONDITION FOR THE MILWAUKEE
BRAVES TO RELOCATE THERE.
AND YET LIKE AMERICA WRIT LARGE,
ITS CLEAR THAT CHALLENGES STILL
REMAIN EVEN NOW.
BLACK PLAYERS MAKE UP JUST 7.8%
OF PLAYERS ON OPENING DAY
ROSTERS IN 2020.
BASEBALL IS NOT EXACTLY A SPORT
THATS DOING GANGBUSTERS WITH
BLACK FANS EITHER.
SO IT IS STRIKING THAT THE
LEAGUE THAT TOOK THE STRONGEST
ACTION AGAINST GEORGIAS VOTER
SUPPRESSION LAW IS NOT THE
OVERWHELMINGLY BLACK NBA OR THE
NFL.
AND NOW THE REPUBLICAN PARTY,
THE PARTY THAT WRAPPED ITSELF IN
THE FLAG WHILE EATING FREEDOM
FRIES, WANTS TO CANCEL AMERICAS
PASTIME BECAUSE THAT MOST
AMERICAN OF INSTITUTIONS SAYS
MAKING IT HARDER FOR BLACK AND
BROWN PEOPLE TO VOTE IS NOT IN
LINE WITH THEIR VALUES.
SO WHAT WILL CONSERVATIVES
CANCEL NEXT?
APPLE PIE?
TEXAS REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR GREG
ABBOTT REFUSED TO THROW OUT THE
FIRST PITCH AT THE TEXAS RANGERS
HOME OPENER AND SAID HE WOULD
BOYCOTT MLB EVENTS.
AND THE REPUBLICAN PARTY ITSELF
TWEETED, THREE STRIKES, YOURE
OUT, ACCUSING THE LEAGUE OF A
COMMUNIST CONSPIRACY.
YOU REALLY CANT MAKE THIS STUFF
UP.
BUT IT ISNT JUST MAJOR LEAGUE
BASEBALL, OH NO.
THE PARTY OF POLITICAL THEATER,
THE SUPPOSED PARTY OF THE FREE
MARKET IS IN FULL HAIR ON FIRE
MELTDOWN OVER CORPORATE AMERICA
DANING TO CRITICIZE THEIR
ANTI-DEMOCRATIC VOTER
SUPPRESSION LAWS, NOT JUST IN
GEORGIA BUT IN OTHER GOP-LED
STATES LIKE TEXAS.
>> THEY FOLDED LIKE A WET DISH
RAG TO THE CANCEL CULTURE.
>> THEY NEED TO STAY OUT OF
POLITICS.
>> IF I WERE RUNNING A MAJOR
CORPORATION, ID STAY OUT OF
POLITICS.
IM NOT TALKING ABOUT POLITICAL
CONTRIBUTIONS.
>> THIS IS WHAT I CALL THE
PHENOMENON THATS GOING ON.
ITS PROGRESSIVE FASCISM.
THE DEMOCRATS HAVE SUCCESSFULLY
CAPTIVATED THE INSTITUTIONS, YOU
KNOW, POP CULTURE, HOLLYWOOD,
OUR EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS, AND
NOW OUR CORPORATIONS INTO THEIR
OWN WOKE AGENDA.
THIS IS FASCISM.
>> THAT -- THATS NOT -- THATS
NOT THE DEFINITION OF FASCISM.
IT SHOULD GO WITHOUT SAYING THAT
TEXAS CONGRESSMAN DAN CRENSHAW
ACTUALLY DOESNT KNOW THE
DEFINITION OF FASCISM.
HE SHOULD USE THE GOOGLE.
IM JOINED NOW BY JEMELE HILL,
CONTRIBUTING WRITER AT THE
ATLANTIC AND DAVE ZYRON, MSNBC
COLUMNIST AND AUTHOR OF THE
FORTHCOMING BOOK "THE KAEPERNICK
EFFECT: TAKING A KNEE, CHANGING
THE WORLD."
IM EXCITED ABOUT THIS PANEL.
JEMELE, IT IS FASCINATING TO
WATCH REPUBLICANS GO AGAINST THE
FREE MARKET.
THESE ARE PRIVATE ENTERPRISES
THAT IF THEY WANT TO, YOU KNOW,
NOT HAVE THEIR GAME IN A STATE,
THEY HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO DO IT.
I WANT TO READ YOU ONE OF THE
SORT OF PUSHBACKS AGAINST HIM.
TIM SCOTT TWEETED TODAY ON
COLORADO GETTING -- YOU KNOW,
DENVER GETTING THE ALL-STAR GAME
INSTEAD OF GEORGIA.
GEORGIA, VOTER ID, 17 DAYS OF
EARLY VOTING, COLORADO, VOTER
ID, 15 DAYS OF EARLY.
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL IS MOVING
THE ALL-STAR GAME OUT OF
ATLANTA.
THE WOKS ARE AT IT AGAIN, FOLKS.
I WILL NOTE THAT COLORADO PRETTY
MUCH VOTES ALL BY MAIL, SO THEY
DONT NEED AS MANY DAYS OF
ABSENTEE VOTING BECAUSE ITS AN
ALL MAIL -- THEY MAIL EVERYBODY
A BALLOT.
ITS ONLY LIKE 10% OF THE PEOPLE
THERE VOTE IN PERSON.
BUT ANYWAY, THE FLOOR IS YOURS,
JEMELE.
YOUR THOUGHTS.
>> FIRST OF ALL, WHATS UP,
DAVE?
I HAVENT SEEN YOU IN FOREVER.
HES ONE OF MY FAVORITE, AS ARE
YOU, JOY.
CAN I JUST BEG AND PLEAD
CONSERVATIVES AND THE REPUBLICAN
PARTY, CAN YOU PLEASE STOP USING
THE WORD "WOKE"?
CAN YOU PLEASE STOP USING THE
WORD "CANCEL CULTURE"?
REMEMBER WHEN WOKE USED TO BE
COOL, AND NOW ITS MOM ON
FACEBOOK.
LIKE I DONT KNOW WHAT HAPPENED.
>> YES.
>> NEVERTHELESS, THOUGH, WHAT IS
SO INTERESTING TO ME AMONG THE
MANY THINGS, I SHOULD SAY, IS
THAT THEYRE CALLING FOR THESE
ALL-OUT BOYCOTTS OF, YOU KNOW,
OF DELTA, OF COKE, OF ANYBODY
WHO DARES TO -- AND I KNOW THIS
IS WEIRD FOR THEM -- STAND ON
THE RIGHT SIDE OF HISTORY.
JOY, REFRESH ME IF IM RIGHT
ABOUT THIS.
IM HOLD ENOUGH TO REMEMBER WHEN
THEY ALL STOOD IN LINE WHEN A
COLORADO BAKER DECIDED THAT SHE
DID NOT WANT TO MAKE A WEDDING
CAKE FOR A SAME-SEX COUPLE.
THAT WAS JUST A PRIVATE BUSINESS
MAKING A CHOICE.
THEY SAID THAT WAS COOL THEN,
RIGHT?
THAT WAS FREEDOM, RIGHT?
>> THATS FREEDOM.
>> NOW ALL OF A SUDDEN ITS NOT
COOL BECAUSE IT STANDS IN DIRECT
OPPOSITION TO VOTER SUPPRESSION,
WHICH HAS BECOME THEIR CALLING
CARD.
HERES THE REALITY.
THE REPUBLICANS HAVE NO AGENDA.
THEY HAVE NO PLATFORM.
ALL THEY CAN GIVE YOU IS
CANCELING MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL,
LIL NAS X, CARDI B, AND MEGAN
THEE STALLION.
>> YOU BOTH ARE TWO OF MY
FAVORITE GUESTS AS WELL.
IM SO EXCITED TO HAVE YOU BOTH
ON.
DAVE, IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT,
THIS IS NOT A LEAGUE THAT IS
CATERING TO A LOT OF BLACK FANS
EXACTLY.
THERES VERY FEW BLACK FOLKS
THAT ARE PLAYING.
IT ALSO ISNT EVEN IN ATLANTA.
ITS IN THE MORE WHITE COUNTY.
SO ITS OBVIOUS THAT THEY SEE A
BUSINESS CASE FOR DOING THIS FOR
THEIR BOTTOM LINE, RIGHT?
THEY OBVIOUSLY SEE THIS BECAUSE
BACK IN THE DAY, THESE LEAGUES
SAT BACK, YOU KNOW, AND ALLOWED
ALL SORTS OF HORRORS TO GO ON
AGAINST BLACK PEOPLE AND DIDNT
DO ANYTHING.
FOR THEM TO MOVE TELLS ME THIS
IS A BUSINESS DECISION FOR THEM.
>> ABSOLUTELY.
THIS IS MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
WERE TALKING ABOUT.
THIS IS A CONSERVATIVE
INSTITUTION, AND I THINK WHAT
WERE SEEING IS A REFLECTION OF
THE FACT THAT THE GOP IS NOT
WILLING TO LOOK ITSELF IN THE
MIRROR AND ASK THE QUESTION,
WHAT IS SO NOXIOUS ABOUT US?
WHAT IS SO TOXIC ABOUT OUR
AGENDA THAT EVEN MAJOR LEAGUE
BASEBALL IS NOT WILLING TO STAND
WITH US?
BECAUSE THAT, TO ME, WOULD BE A
WAKE-UP CALL INSTEAD OF SAYING
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL IS NOW
PART OF THE COMMIE FASCIST
AGENDA.
THEY DONT KNOW WHICH WAY IS UP.
TEXAS LEGISLATORS TODAY, JOY,