After two mass murder incidents in less than two weeks, the NY Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays decided they’d had enough.
The two MLB teams unleashed the power of their Twitter accounts to share the alarming and heartbreaking statistics related to gun violence.
The teams recognized that it was time to address an epidemic that continues to plague this country and destroy families.
It was a sobering, yet necessary fusillade of information targeted directly at those in congress, specifically Republicans, who refuse to enact serious gun legislation.
The information-heavy threads addressed the impact of gun violence on various groups regardless of color, age, location, education, career or income.
Their tweets also rebuked those who remain silent on the issue or ask “What about Chicago?”, the stupid new response that has become a recent Republican go-to strategy of deflection.
The issue of gun violence is more personal for the Yankees as they play in the Bronx, a borough that has constantly been plagued by gun violence.
According to CompStat, the Bronx has experienced a two-year increase of over 30% in gun-related crimes. While the overall numbers are down significantly from the “South Bronx, Fort Apache” days, it has always been an issue for the communities across the borough.
And the area directly surrounding Yankee Stadium has seen its fair share of shootings as well.
The decision by the two teams to address this deadly issue is important to acknowledge and applaud.
Not only did they share the heartbreaking statistics, but they also addressed the relationship between guns, domestic violence and suicide, and also offered contact information for those seeking help.
The action taken by the Yankees and Rays should be emulated by all sports teams and leagues across the country.
It would be a major counter to the infuriating and cowardly response by Republicans that offer suggestions about doors and arming teachers.
But there is a powerful force that has given glimpses of its influence in the past, but that has yet to unleash its full power to effect real change.
That is the power of sports.
It was there to heal after 9/11.
It was there to motivate voter registration during the 2016 and 2020 elections.
Now is the time for sports to go full “Avengers Assemble” and forcefully challenge the do-nothing representatives and senators into enacting gun legislation that will help deter future Buffalos, Uvalde and Sandy Hooks.
At its essence, gun violence knows no race, color, creed, gender or political affiliation. Neither do sports.
Yet gun violence continues its physical attack on communities.
Now it’s time for sports to respond by harnessing its power and wielding it directly against gun violence and those who refuse to act.
