Ballpark sign causes stir
After board OKS BLM placard, some members pushing for a new vote
The question of whether Tri-village Little League should hang a Black Lives Matter banner at its fields in 2021 has caused a months-long stir within the community.
After a vote of 11 to 8 in favor of TVLL hanging up a Black
Lives Matter sign next season alongside others, including one that reads “We Support Bethlehem Police,” members of the all-white board are now trying to restart discussions and mobilize for a revote.
Traditionally, signs bearing the names of businesses or organizations that donate to TVLL are hung at the league’s fields. In July, Ted Hartman, a local immigration attorney and a Little League dad, proposed sponsoring a banner expressing that his law practice supports Black Lives Matter after the killing of George Floyd by a police officer in Minnesota sparked worldwide protests about police brutality and institutional racism.
“It’s about making an inclusive environment in the ballpark,” Hartman said. “I’ve talked to families with kids of color, and they are adamant that they want this to go up to make their kids feel welcome. It would mean everything to them.”
However, some board members resisted the idea, arguing that Little League is not a place for signs that can be viewed as political. While most signs at TVLL bear the names of local business sponsors, there also have been signs for organizations such as the Bethlehem Democratic Committee and the Bethlehem Police Officers’ Union, sources said.
Hartman mentioned the number of police officers on the TVLL board — 5 out of more than 33 members — as a point of conflict.
“The board is pretty much controlled by police officers, and they are saying that Bethlehem Police Union having a sign is fine,” Hartman said, referring to a sign that features the union name and logo, followed by words “Play Ball.”
He continued, “And there are people who don’t want the words Black Lives Matter anywhere.”
Former TVLL President Alan Poirer told Hartman that after consulting with Little League International, TVLL was encouraged to put up its own sign that says “No place for racism and hate in the Little League.”
Hartman’s proposal for his sign was ultimately tabled.
A board member, who spoke on the condition of remaining anonymous, said discussions about whether or not to post a Black Lives Matter sign — representing TVLL itself and not a donor to the organization — resumed following a board leadership change and the formation of a sub
committee to discuss the matter.
Within the subcommittee, the board member said, discussions did not focus so much on whether to hang the sign but rather on what more substantive actions could be taken to support diversity and inclusion in the league. The ideas included connecting more with other local leagues and donating equipment to those withfewer resources than the Bethlehem area. The TVLL executive board also said in an email it has developed initiatives in partnership with TMobile to cover league registration fees for underprivileged kids in the community.
The mother of a Black player, who asked the Times Union not to use her name, said the drawn-out conflict about the Black Lives Matter sign has defeated the entire purpose.
“If it’s up, that’s great. But I think overall, it would have to be so much more widely accepted for it to really be an effective point,” she said.
The mother, however, also stressed that there are more important things to her than a sign, and was doubtful that the TVLL is a useful or effective place for such conversations, considering much deeper social and racial issues that exist in the predominantly white community.
“A situation where my son is possibly in danger because he and my husband are driving in the car and they get pulled over and they haven’t done anything — that’s scarier to me,” she said. “I can appreciate someone feeling so strongly about (putting a sign up) as a social issue. But in
the scheme of life and racism and systemic racism and the racism that we live and breathe every day here in Delmar, that is so not on the top of our radar.”
Hartman said the board ultimately voted in November in favor, 11 to 8, of putting up its own Black Lives Matter sign if accompanied by three other signs: “We support Bethlehem police,” “TVLL supports LGBT rights” and “We are one Bethlehem.” When asked about the vote, the board replied to the Times Union that it does not comment on internal matters.
“I’m ecstatic,” Hartman posted on Facebook after the vote. “This is the type of town I want to live in.”
But a number of board members are now calling for more discussions on the matter, sources said.
Because the vote was taken during the offseason, some board members didn’t know it was taking place and missed it, the anonymous board member told the Times Union. Because the topic is important, they said, members wanted to make sure everyone would be involved in a final vote.
The TVLL executive board told the Times Union in an email that board members who were absent during the vote will be able to vote, and that no final decision has been made regarding sponsorship and advertising in 2021.
“We do not feel that we want to rush to judgment,” the board said in a statement. “Rest assured, when we make a decision it will be thorough, inclusive and represent the opinions of all of our board members.”