An Atlanta activist is attempting to raise money for a nonprofit organization whose fundraising efforts were derailed when Major League Baseball relocated the All-Star Game.
Darryl Wilson, a retired Navy pilot, has decided to organize a "Stand Up for Atlanta" fundraiser in an attempt to recoup Men of Excellence's losses due to MLB's decision to move its Midsummer Classic from Atlanta to Denver.
MLB moved the game after Georgia passed a new voting law, which progressives claim makes it harder for Blacks and other minorities to cast ballots.
Wilson said MLB’s "rash" judgment marked an unfortunate example of the "collateral damage of this partisan culture war currently gripping Georgia and our country."
"Lost in the frustration and anger from both sides of the aisle are the men and women who will lose out on one of the largest revenue-generating events they will see in their lifetime," Wilson said. "Let's stand up for Atlanta and make sure that even though the All-Star Game was taken away from the city, we look out for these organizations that are hurt the most by this decision."
Men of Excellence, which serves underprivileged youths, is one of several nonprofits that raise money by staffing concession stands at Atlanta's Truist Park, The Washington Free Beacon reported Wednesday.
Special events such as the MLB All-Star Game can generate approximately $50,000 for the group, which provides such services as rental assistance for single parents, sponsored mentorship programs for at-risk teens, and funded scholarships for metro Atlanta high schoolers.
Men of Excellence said many Atlanta families "won't receive the Men of Excellence services on which they rely" in a statement.
Group associate manager Kendole Clark thanked Wilson for launching the fundraiser.
"We raise thousands of dollars to then put back into the lives of high schoolers in the Atlanta area," Clark said in a statement. "We are grateful for Darryl's willingness to try and raise some of the money back that will be lost with the All-Star Game being moved out of Georgia. Every dollar raised goes to helping change a young person's life."
MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred announced the All-Star Game’s relocation in an April press release, which called the state's election reform measures "restrictions to the ballot box."
That move came after President Joe Biden told ESPN he would "strongly support" the move. Biden also claimed the voting law, which he called "Jim Crow on steroids,” would close polls early in the state. The law did not change voting hours.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki claimed Biden simply was "conveying that he would support that decision if that decision was made by Major League Baseball" and not "calling for companies to boycott."
A recent Atlanta Journal-Constitution poll found 54% of registered Georgia voters opposed the decision to move the All-Star Game. While Atlanta's population is 51% Black, Denver’s is 76% white.
Shortly after MLB announced its decision to relocate the game, Gov. Brian Kemp, R-Ga., said the move hurts the "little guy."
"I will tell you who is getting screwed, it's the little guy working in these bars and taverns and hotels that are not going to have guests," Kemp told Fox News' "America Reports." "I will tell you, people in Georgia, people that don't normally follow politics, they know somebody is lying to us, and it's not me."
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