After the Department of Defense had taken down, then re-posted, an online feature about Jackie Robinson’s military service, even including the letters “DEI” in a new link, Mina Kimes let her feelings on the matter known.
Kimes made an appearance on ESPN’s “Around the Horn” on Wednesday, just hours after the story was restored, saying the MLB legend’s history “matters.”
“Jackie Robinson was known for many things. But above all, first and foremost, it was his ongoing courage in the face of racial discrimination,” Kimes said. “In fact, in addition to crossing the color barrier in baseball, he served in a segregated unit in the Army and, in one instance, refused to move to the back of the bus, was arrested and acquitted. That matters. That history can be erased, it cannot be undone, and it must be recognized to fully understand and celebrate his legacy.”
It may or may not be a coincidence, but her ESPN colleague, Robert Griffin III, said in an X post of his own that sports shows should be about sports.
“Sports shows on TV should be about sports not politics,” the former NFL quarterback wrote.
“This tweet is not about Jackie Robinson. His significance can never and should never be erased. Breaking the color barrier in baseball in itself is not political,” Griffin continued. “Jesse Owens winning 4 Gold Medals in itself was not political. Jack Johnson becoming the 1st Black Boxing Heavyweight Champ in itself was not political. They all had political ramifications. They all challenged the status quo of racial barriers to fair play, race relations and civil rights. That should always be acknowledged and never forgotten. They shouldn’t be used as an excuse to push political agendas on sports shows on national television to an audience there to consume sports content.”
DOD BRIEFLY TAKES DOWN ONLINE FEATURE ABOUT JACKIE ROBINSON’S MILITARY SERVICE, INCLUDES ‘DEI’ IN LINK
The story, titled “Sports Heroes Who Served: Baseball Great Jackie Robinson Was WWII Soldier,” was launched on Feb. 9, 2021, written by David Vergun. Other features on “Sports Heroes Who Served” include Bob Feller, Hoyt Wilhelm, Bob Uecker and many others.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Pentagon about the removal of the story and whether it and the “DEI” inclusion in the URL were on purpose. The Pentagon did not say whether it was done on purpose, but Pentagon press secretary John Ullyot released the following statement to Fox News Digital before the story was restored.
“Everyone at the Defense Department loves Jackie Robinson, as well as the Navajo Code Talkers, the Tuskegee airmen, the Marines at Iwo Jima and so many others – we salute them for their strong and in many cases heroic service to our country, full stop. We do not view or highlight them through the prism of immutable characteristics, such as race, ethnicity, or sex. We do so only by recognizing their patriotism and dedication to the warfighting mission like ever other American who has worn the uniform.
“DEI — Discriminatory Equity Ideology does the opposite. It is a form of Woke cultural Marxism that Divides the force, Erodes unit cohesion and Interferes with the services’ core warfighting mission.
“We are pleased by the rapid compliance across the Department with the directive removing DEI content from all platforms. In the rare cases that content is removed — either deliberately or by mistake — that is out of the clearly outlined scope of the directive, we instruct the components and they correct the content so it recognizes our heroes for their dedicated service alongside their fellow Americans, period.”
Last month, the Pentagon called for a “digital content refresh” that would “remove and archive DoD news articles, photos, and videos promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).”
Robinson was drafted into the military five years before breaking Major League Baseball’s color barrier in 1947 and was honorably discharged in 1944 after serving as a second lieutenant during World War II. His number 42 was retired throughout baseball in 1997.
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