Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/Blogs
Blogs

Is This David Ortiz Bobblehead Racist?

Posted byBy Ricky Riley | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

Bobbleheads depicting Boston Red Sox superstar David Ortiz were removed from a free giveaway Tuesday after the Red Sox organization deemed them racist.

According to CBS Boston, the figurines depicted Ortiz’s 2013 “This is our (expletive) city!” speech. Some of the figures had large white lips that could be considered racially insensitive.

Fans at Fenway Park were supposed to get one of the bobbleheads as a token of appreciation for their loyalty as Red Sox fans. However, they will be getting replacement figures at a future game.

The team released a statement via Twitter stating that the bobbleheads were “unacceptable for distribution.”

https://twitter.com/RedSox/status/763076286327689217/photo/1

“It was an inaccurate portrayal of David. It doesn’t really look like David. No. 2, I personally thought it seemed to be an offensive portrayal of him and that the facial features were racially insensitive,” Red Sox President Sam Kennedy told The Boston Globe. “If I was feeling this way, certainly other people would. So we pulled the plug.”

Independent journalism doesn't fund itself.

We hope this story was worth your time. For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed Black-owned and independently run. We didn't get here by waiting on ad budgets that were never built to prioritize us. Our readers did that.

Corporate support for Black media has always been thin. Outlets like ours get roughly 1% of the $170 billion spent on U.S. advertising each year, and that margin is shrinking further as advertisers walk back the DEI-linked commitments they made in 2020. That's the backdrop. It's not why we're asking.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top