Los Suns and Los Cerveceros

It's Cinco de Mayo!

The Phoenix Suns are recognizing the day by wearing jerseys emblazoned with "Los Suns."
This isn't just about a little Cinco de Mayo fun. The jerseys are a political statement.

From the Associated Press, on ESPN:

The Phoenix Suns will wear "Los Suns" on their jerseys in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals on Wednesday night, owner Robert Sarver said, "to honor our Latino community and the diversity of our league, the state of Arizona, and our nation."

The decision to wear the jerseys on the Cinco de Mayo holiday stems from a law passed by the Arizona Legislature and signed by Gov. Jan Brewer that has drawn widespread criticism from Latino organizations and civil rights groups that say it could lead to racial profiling of Hispanics. President Barack Obama has called the law "misguided."

Sarver, who was born and raised in Tucson, said frustration with the federal government's failure to deal with the illegal immigration issue led to the passage of what he called "a flawed state law."

"However intended, the result of passing the law is that our basic principles of equal rights and protection under the law are being called into question," he said, "and Arizona's already struggling economy will suffer even further setbacks at a time when the state can ill-afford them."

...The NBA Players Association released a statement criticizing Arizona's immigration law and praising the Suns for the gesture.

"We applaud the actions of Phoenix Suns players and management and join them in taking a stand against the misguided efforts of Arizona lawmakers," the NBAPA said. "We are consulting with our members and our player leadership to determine the most effective way for our union to continue to voice our opposition to this legislation."

But Kerr said "this isn't a huge political stand as much as it is just a celebration of diversity."

He said the Suns called the NBA for approval "and they were all for it."

Suns coach Alvin Gentry didn't want to comment on Arizona's immigration bill and said he was focused on showing appreciation for the Latino community and Arizona's diversity.

"I'm not trying to duck it," Gentry said. "I don't know enough about it to really comment on it. I would think that if it had anything to do with racial profiling, then obviously as an African-American I would not be for anything that had any hint of racial profiling."

The Suns wore the "Los Suns" jerseys twice in the regular season, and won both games.

"It's going to be great to wear Los Suns," Phoenix's Amare Stoudemire said, "to let the Latin community know that we're behind them 100 percent."

I don't know.

"Los Suns"?

I think it's inappropriate for NBA players to be making a political statement on jerseys worn during a game.

Clearly, it's not really about celebrating diversity. It's political. Reread the remarks from team owner Robert Sarver.

Oh, yeah. It's definitely political.

Tomorrow, the Brewers will be playing the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Should the Brewers rename themselves "Los Cerveceros" for Cinco de Mayo?

On Friday, as well as Saturday and Sunday, the Brewers will be playing in Arizona, ground zero of the ILLEGAL immigration debate.

I think the Brewers should play as "Los Cerveceros" when they go to Arizona. Not as a political message, just to celebrate diversity, of course.

In addition, I think it would be a nice gesture for the Chorizo, of the famous Klement's Racing Sausages, to make an appearance.

No need for the other sausages -- the Italian, the Hot Dog, the Brat, and the Polish -- to make the trip to Arizona. No one is celebrating them at the moment.