MLB Misplaces Its Spine & Alters Language To Its Diversity Programs
Were it not so obviously the product of something nefarious, it would be entertaining to watch how private companies react to the Trump administration’s declaration of the end of all things DEI. The truth is that Trump’s reach for this sort of thing simply doesn’t extend past the federal government, legally speaking. That doesn’t mean that such a fascistic appetite will be satiated with mere appetizers, of course. There are all kinds of things the government can do, be it through regulatory mechanisms, punishment through unrelated government machinations, or merely using the presidential bully pulpit to make life miserable for private organizations that have their own DEI initiatives. And the threat of all of the above is making for a very public display as to which of these organizations have a backbone and which do not.
Major League Baseball, it appears, does not. For over a decade, MLB has had a DEI program and a webpage for that program. For a sport that has a celebrated diverse workforce, particularly at the player level, MLB’s program has been touted as quite effective. Last week, however, some changes were made to the program’s webpage.
Major League Baseball removed references to “diversity” from its careers website, the latest organization to acquiesce to the Trump administration’s executive order aiming to purge diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in America.
“Our values on diversity remain unchanged,” MLB said a statement Friday. “We are in the process of evaluating our programs for any modifications to eligibility criteria that are needed to ensure our programs are compliant with federal law as they continue forward.”
What federal law exactly? MLB was asked that question, but isn’t answering. I imagine, with a nod to the opening of this post, that MLB has its antitrust exemption in mind as it makes this move. It would be exactly like the Trump administration to hold that valuable exemption over the league’s head to coerce it on the unrelated matter of its speech and programs related to DEI. That would be an obvious First Amendment violation, of course, but when in the flying shitballs has this administration even concerned itself with such minor details as following the Constitution?
And so MLB has made the language changes that it hopes will keep it out of Trump’s crosshairs. That won’t work, of course. That sort of half-measure never does. If you give Trump an inch, he’ll slap you across the face and then drag you unconscious across several miles to get to where he wants to go. The only real antidote to this is, to borrow a phrase, “Fight! Fight! Fight!” It appears Major League Baseball lacks the fortitude for the battle.
And it bares mentioning that the slimy claim that its views on diversity haven’t changed, even as it takes these cowardly steps to pretend otherwise, are as transparent as can be. Craig Calcaterra’s always excellent Cup of Coffee Newsletter makes this clear.
The inescapable conclusion here is that Major League Baseball’s decision makers are cowards. They’ve had a much-lauded and respected diversity program for nearly a decade but the minute political winds changed they trashed it so as not to displease Donald Trump. I strongly suspect that they have no intention of bringing the program back.
Keep all this in mind when MLB engages in its annual coopting of Jackie Robinson’s legacy next month. When it takes credit for his accomplishments while, quite clearly, sharing none of his values.
The Pentagon’s anti-DEI purge already briefly erased content on Jackie Robinson’s military career, only to be reinstated after a public backlash.
What was a great day in MLB, Jackie Robinson Day, appears destined to be a a cynical, vomit-inducing affair this year.