I reported earlier this month about the plight of Oakland A’s broadcaster Glen Kuiper, who was suspended from NBC Sports California after he inadvertently uttered a racial slur during the broadcast of an A’s-Royals game. The story really ticked me off because it seemed so obvious that his misstep was entirely unintentional. As defined by the urban dictionary, Glen clearly made the oral equivalent of a typo—a speako.
But now it gets worse. He was fired Monday for the “offense” after an internal review.
Here’s what I wrote about the terrible crime on May 7 along with the accompanying video:
The slip-up happened during pre-game coverage as the 20-year veteran was describing what he and his broadcasting partner Dallas Braden were up to before the game. “We had a phenomenal day today,” he said. “N-word League Museum, and Arthur Bryant’s Barbeque.”
To any thinking person, it’s obvious that he tripped over the word Negro and had no intention of slurring anyone or denigrating anyone.
Watch:
If Glen Kuiper gets fired over this, I officially give up on the A’s.
This man has given his heart and soul to this team & has been a pleasure to listen to over my lifetime as a fan.
He clearly meant to say “Negro league”. Give him some grace. https://t.co/kEfoXQyXGR
— Jon Root (@JonnyRoot_) May 6, 2023
Yes, he said the “N” word, and it’s jarring. It’s also abundantly clear that he did not mean to.
But to the left, speech is violence—even if accidental—and punishment must be meted out. Do not poke the woke gods or they shall respond with thunder.
Sports site Deadspin took a ludicrous and retributive angle, arguing that his life should be ruined because the mistake clearly shows the bigotry in his heart: “That hateful six-letter word doesn’t just slip out of your mouth unless you’ve used it dozens of times before and it’s part of your vernacular,” they wrote. Or maybe you’ve just listened to popular music where the term is blared out daily by musical artists. (Only click that link if you’re prepared to be assaulted by truly offensive lyrics.)
“We thank Glen for his dedication to Bay Area baseball over the years,” said a soulless NBC spokesperson. You work for a company for 20 years, you’re a beloved announcer with a strong track record who gets canned for one slip of the tongue, and this lily-livered statement is the best they can come up with? Do you even get a gold watch?
It’s as if Kuiper is a sacrifice to the gods—an innocent one, it would seem—but who cares, we must have his head to prove our devotion to the cause.
NBC Sports California, which is part of NBCUniversal, said that the termination came after an “internal review.” Now if that review found that Kuiper was found to have repeatedly used epithets and shown racial bias, then I will change my tune. But they have not indicated that. If they’re basing his firing on this one incident, however, then they should be deeply ashamed of themselves because it shows they’re willing to ruin someone’s life just for a few virtue points.
Disgusting.
The biggest previous controversy I can find about Kuiper is that he ranked an NFL prospect lower than some people would have liked. Off with his head!
Kuiper for his part has been gracious about the error, apologizing during the broadcast and later issuing heartfelt mea culpas and declaring “Racism is in no way a part of me.” After his firing, he was at a loss to understand just what has happened to fairness in this country:
“I wish the Oakland A’s and NBC Sports would have taken into consideration my 20-year career, my solid reputation, integrity and character, but in this current environment traits like integrity and character are no longer considered.”
“I will always have a hard time understanding how one mistake in a 20-year broadcasting career is cause for termination, but I know something better is in my future,” he added. “I love the game of baseball and I love being a broadcaster, and I love the Bay Area community. I hope I will be remembered for that.”
Glen Kuiper’s statement:
“I wish the Oakland A’s and NBC Sports would have taken into consideration my 20-year-career, my solid reputation, integrity, and character, but in this current environment traits like integrity and character are no longer considered.”#Athletics pic.twitter.com/yOBoLWPaWk
— Uprooted (@uprootedoakland) May 23, 2023
Sports has become an ugly battleground for the new cult of wokeism—ESPN and its radio stations are almost as much MSNBC-style political shows as they are shows about athletics—and many former fans swore off the NBA after the league’s divisive actions during the nationwide George Floyd riots.
(See: Legendary Coach Phil Jackson Blasts the Woke NBA, Says He Doesn’t Watch Games Anymore)
Now, the LA Dodgers have invited, uninvited, and now RE-invited the offensive anti-Catholic trans group “The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” to receive an award at their Pride Night in June.
As I said, if it turns out there’s more to this story than has been reported, and Kuiper has been secretly living his life as a white supremacist, then I’ll withdraw my criticism. But even if that happens, NBCUniversal has shown that they are willing to sacrifice anyone and anything simply to virtue signal to the world that they are down for the progressive cause—even when punishing Kuiper for a mistake has nothing to do with real justice.
I sincerely hope that they experience the growing aphorism, “get woke go broke.”
At RedState, we stand against the Cult of Woke, and are tired of seeing people getting canceled for ridiculous reasons. Kuiper is guilty of nothing more than a simple mistake, nothing more, nothing less. We will continue to fight against such unfairness.
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