Baltimore Orioles Manager: ‘I’ve Never Been Black,’ Never Faced Those ‘Challenges’
After the Baltimore Orioles and Chicago White Sox played a game in front of an empty Camden Yards on Wednesday, Orioles manager Buck Showalter made some comments about race relations that many have praised.
“You know, I’ve never been black, okay?” Showalter said. “So I don’t know — I can’t put myself — I’ve never faced the challenges that they face, okay? So I understand the emotion, but I don’t — it’s a pet peeve of mine when somebody says, well, you know, ‘why don’t they do this, why doesn’t somebody do that.’ You have never been black, okay? So just slow down a little bit.”
The Orioles were set to play a three-game series with the Chicago White Sox starting on Monday, but Monday’s and Tuesday’s games were postponed due to ongoing safety concerns following violence and looting that plagued the city following the death of Freddie Gray. On Wednesday, the teams played an afternoon game that was closed to the public — the first spectator-less game in Major League Baseball History.
“We have made quite a statement as a city, you know, some good some bad,” Showalter continued. “But now let’s get on with taking the statement we’ve made and creating a positive. We talked to the players, I want to be a rallying force for our city.”
On Friday morning, a Maryland State Attorney announced that charges had been filed against the six officers involved in Gray’s “illegal” arrest and subsequent death, and that Gray’s death was a homicide.
Watch the video below, via Fox Boston:
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[Image via screengrab]
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