The Minnesota Twins and the Boston Red Sox players voted not to play a game Monday, April 12, 2021, in protest of the police shooting of Daunte Wright on Sunday night. A 7 pm – 6 am curfew was enacted by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz Monday, affecting three counties around Minneapolis.
Twins president Dave St. Peter stated:
Our community has been through a lot. We have a trial taking place just blocks away from Target Field. Emotions across our community, emotions across our organization are raw.
Wright. a 20-year-old Black man, was shot and killed by a police officer Sunday after a traffic stop in the Brooklyn Center suburbs. Police chief Tim Gannon called the shooting accidental.
Gannon continues by saying the female officer meant to fire a stun gun but fired her handgun by mistake during a struggle with Wright. The three officers were trying to arrest Wright on an outstanding warrant.
Emotions in Minneapolis are already at an all-time high due to the trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin charged with the murder of George Floyd. Protesters have planned a rally in the downtown area near Twins Target Field Monday.
The NHL rescheduled the Blues – Wild game. League officials expressed that their decision was made out of respect for the community. They extended their sincere condolences to Daunte Wright’s family and friends.
The NBA Minnesota Timberwolves believed that the postponement of the Monday nights game versus the Brooklyn Nets was best due to the tragic shooting of Daunte Wright.
Written by Omari Jahi
Sources:
ESPN: Minnesota Twins, Timberwolves, Wild postpone games in wake of police shooting of Daunte Wright; Joon Lee
WCVB5: Monday’s Red Sox v. Twins game postponed ‘out of respect’ after fatal police shooting near Minneapolis;
Yahoo! Sports: Twins postpone matinee game vs. Red Sox after Minnesota police shooting of Daunte Wright; Cassandra Negley
Featured Image by JL1Row Courtesy of Wikimedia – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Elvert Barnes’ Flickr Page – Creative Commons License