Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James is most pleased with MLB's decision to move the 2021 All-Star Game out of Atlanta after the state of Georgia passed a controversial voter suppression bill last week.
LeBron James, who recently became a part owner of the Boston Red Sox, tweeted he was “proud” to be part of the MLB community.
Proud to call myself a part of the @mlb family today. @Morethanavote #BlackLivesMatter 🙏🏾✊🏾👑
— LeBron James (@KingJames) April 2, 2021
LeBron James' involvement in Major League Baseball might have provided a real element of leverage in making sure the sport's leadership responded quickly. In a statement, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred stated “Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box. That statement can be read below.
Here is the full release from MLB. The money line from commission Rob Manfred: “Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box.” pic.twitter.com/3tghCUDM47
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) April 2, 2021
As LeBron James might already know, the Atlanta Braves organization responded with their own statement:
“This was neither our decision, nor our recommendation and we are saddened that fans will not be able to see the event in our city,” the statement read. “The Braves organization will continue to stress the importance of equal voting opportunities and we had hoped our city could use this event as a platform to enhance the discussion. Our city has always been known as a uniter in divided times and we will miss the opportunity to address issues that are important to our community.”
The idea of “our city” highlighted in said statement garnered some backlash regarding the team's relocation history.
https://twitter.com/barry/status/1378073842774593536
The state of Georgia has a long history of voter suppression. It was of particular interest to LeBron James and his More Than A Vote group during both the 2020 general election as well as the eventual Senate runoff elections. Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock is up for re-election in 2022, because his 2020 election was a special election, not part of that Senate seat's normal six-year cycle.
LeBron James is hardly alone in his support of the move. The Players Alliance–a group of 150 Black baseball players–issued a statement supporting MLB's decision. It also retweeted James' own sentiments.
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