For many, sports is the great escape from the mundane and tedious tasks of life. We are able to sit back and not worry about anything more than tackles, touchdowns, 3-pointers, home runs, strikeouts, etc... However, thanks to the actions of Phoenix Suns Owner Robert Sarver, the realm of sports is about to mix with politics and no good can come from that.
I won't delve into my personal feelings about the law because you are here for sports, but there has to be some political input into this. Arizona has been slowly suffering from a decline in the amount of tourists that visit the state, which is not unrelated to their porous borders and threat of violence from roving drug cartels. The Phoenix Suns are a main attraction in the state during the NBA season and they undoubtedly inject precious funds into the Arizona economy. Funds which may start to decline after the infusion of politics into sport thanks to Suns Owner Sarver.
As unpopular as the law seems to be on the nightly news and with all of the pundits, the law actually is quite favorable in Arizona. Their Governor has seen her approval ratings rise some 22 points up to 64% since the passage of the law. So, using simple logic, it can be said that a rise in the approval rating of the Governor means that those people agree with her policies and direction, including the Immigration Law. Now, why would you want to do anything to alienate those 64% of the population and draw more attention to an already volatile situation by actively protesting the law in a setting usually exempt from politics? When you are one of the biggest attractions in the state and you are a key provider of funds for the state via tourism, why would you jeopardize all that to make a political statement which differs from the majority of the state?
Here is the issue with the involvement of Sarver and others sports figures in the political scene in Arizona; alienation (no pun intended). Remember the uproar when Rush Limbaugh stuck his nose into possible owning the Rams? Players were objectioning, the league was up in arms and the political newsreels were wondering how the NFL could ever let someone like Rush enter the league? The NFL did not want someone whose voice is on loan, from God, in the league.
And, whether you want to believe it or not, a large part of the reason why were his controversial political views. So now, some want to take it a step further and exile an entire state from taking part in sports because of political policy? It's surely a slippery slope. It wouldn't be too far-fetched to imagine, if these boycotts are successful, denying a player a contract because of their views on abortion, or not awarding an expansion franchise to a state that voted for the wrong presidential candidate. Do we really want to start a trend of alienating players, fans, or even entire states based on politics?
Now, Sarver is not a polar figure like Limbaugh but he is surely blending the line between politics and sports. There is no way to predict what will happen in the long haul, but it makes no sense for Sarver in the short term to make the request for the "Los Suns" jerseys in tonight's game. The fact that they wish to honor the Latino make-up of their state along with Cinco de Mayo is admirable. Make no mistake, I fully support honoring the heritage of a large portion of the Suns fans, and under normal circumstances, it is a wonderful gesture.
However, there has to be some realization that doing so in the midst of a virulent societal upheaval is not the best business decision, especially when 64% of your state, and possibly, a majority of your fans, support the law. When your livelihood depends on pepole attending your events and buying tickets, would you really want to give a majority of them a reason to not attend? Sports is supposed to be our refuge from the struggles of daily life, not a reminder of why we need that escape.
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