Hank Aaron comments on racism & 40 years since #715

[JohnBriggs12]

What a sad day that the great icon of Milwaukee baseball history has used the anniversary of his greatest moment to make a political statement so outrageous that it defies logic. I grew up idolizing the man, but no more. I hope we've seen the last of the Aaron tributes in Milwaukee because he has insulted a huge number of his fans including this one.

[craigharmann]

Wow. I'll have to look up the context.....but wow.

 

This is what was quoted. "Sure, this country has a black president, but when you look at a black president, President Obama is left with his foot stuck in the mud from all of the Republicans with the way he's treated."

"We still have a long ways to go in the country."

 

He's entitled to his beliefs, no doubt. But sharing them publicly can definitely alienate people.

[bjkrautk]

This should probably be a discussion for the political forum.

[TooLiveBrew]

Locking this up right away. Doesn't belong here even with the obvious sort-of baseball context.

 

I edited the thread title because Aaron did not directly compare Republicans to the KKK. NY Daily News ran a sensationalist &, frankly, creative title on their 'article' (surprise, surprise).

 

Here's a link to the original USA Today story for anyone curious: http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2014/04/07/hank-aaron-40th-anniversary-of-715-home-run-babe-ruth/7432225/?sf24769494=1