A raisin company terminated its partnership with the Fresno Grizzlies, the Washington Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate, after the minor league team aired a video that implied Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was an “enemy of freedom” earlier this week.
Sun-Maid announced Wednesday its decision to terminate its sponsorship agreement with the Grizzlies, the Fresno Bee reported. In the video, Ocasio-Cortez is shown alongside North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un and former Cuban president Fidel Castro.
Sun-Maid has deep ties to central San Joaquin Valley, according to the Bee. The company also had signage inside Chukchansi Park.
“We are deeply disappointed by the Memorial Day tribute video the Fresno Grizzlies aired on Monday,” Sun-Maid said in a statement to the Fresno Bee. “Sun-Maid does not support the views or sentiments expressed in the video, nor does it condone the airing of it.
“While the Grizzlies have apologized for this mistake, we are standing on the side of what we believe is right and terminating our sponsorship of the team.”
The Grizzlies apologized for the airing of the 3 1/2 minute video, which they say wasn’t vetted properly. They also released an additional statement that apologized directly to Ocasio-Cortez.
Ocasio-Cortez responded to the controversy on Tuesday — tweeting that her life changes because “of the flood of death threats” videos like that one shown inspire.
All of this is to say that words matter, and can have consequences for safety.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) May 28, 2019
For those who believe in “free speech”: whose free speech do you believe in?
Bc some folks using free speech to defend racism are also supporting folks passing laws to allow running over protesters.
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