Activists Arrested After Protesting Arizona Anti-Immigrant Law At Nats-Diamondbacks Game Sunday

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

Four local immigration rights and labor activists were arrested yesterday after staging a protest against Arizona’s anti-immigrant law at the Nationals game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. “Baseball is our national pastime and emblematic of our national values and identity,” said Gustavo Torres of CASA de Maryland, which organized the protest with the National Day Laborers Organizing Network (NDLON) and Presente.org. As an array of local and national community and civil rights organizations protested outside the game, activists inside dropped a banner that read “Bud Selig Move All-Stars Game: No SB1070” and ran onto the field (click here for a brief YouTube video) at the beginning of the fifth inning, disrupting the game. The protesters were a diverse African-American, Latino, Asian, and Caucasian group waving patriotic colors and chanting “Strike Out Arizona!” Arrested were Gustavo Andrade, Senior Organizing Manager for CASA de Maryland; Rosa Lozano, Youth Organizer for CASA de Maryland; Mackenzie Baris, Executive Director for DC Jobs with Justice; and Virginia Leavell. Activists are demanding that MLB Commissioner Selig commit to move the All-Star game out of Arizona next year. If the game is held in Arizona, they fear that minority players will run the risk of racial profiling and many have already begun receiving advice and training on how to protect themselves.  Numerous players, managers and coaches have spoken out against the law, and several have said they will refuse to participate if the 2011 All-Star Game is held in Arizona. “It is a disgrace for MLB Commissioner Selig to refuse to move the game out of Arizona and we are asking our Nationals to boycott it,” added Torres. The DC action  follows the arrest of several activists last week as they attempted to deliver more than 110,000 petitions to Commissioner Selig during the owners’ quarterly meeting in Minneapolis. Sunday’s protest was part of the national MoveTheGame.org campaign – a coalition of organizations led by Presente.org and MoveOn.org, which has coordinated several rallies, protests and other events across the country in reaction to the passage of Arizona’s anti-immigrant law SB 1070 earlier this year. Photos: Jonathan Newton/Washington Post (top right); Ann Heisenfelt/AP (left); presente.org (bottom right)