This week, the Los Angeles Dodgers made history by being the first sports team to visit the White House since Donald Trump’s second presidential term began. This visit followed a period in which the team found itself at the center of controversy surrounding the administration’s initiatives aimed at undermining diversity, equity, and inclusion within American society. Sports commentator Jemele Hill criticized their decision sharply, expressing disappointment at the franchise’s reluctance to defend Jackie Robinson’s legacy.
Last month, the Department of Defense drew criticism for removing a page detailing Robinson’s military service from its website. After facing backlash and defending its actions in an absurd statement to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the department eventually restored the page. In a recent episode of her podcast Spolitics, Hill remarked that while she wasn’t surprised to see the 2024 World Series champions at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., she was disappointed by their failure to stand up for Robinson’s legacy, stating, “I’m not surprised the Dodgers went to the White House, but I’m still disappointed they chose to [mingle] with the president, whose administration just recently tried to literally erase Jackie Robinson’s [legacy].”
Hill believes the Dodgers and Major League Baseball have a responsibility to challenge any attempts to rewrite baseball history. Reflecting on the silence from Robinson’s team following Passan’s original report, she said, “The people who are dedicated to erasing history do so because they actually want to repeat it. So the Trump administration’s efforts to erase Jackie Robinson is on brand. When they did that, you would think you would have heard a loud and angry response from the Dodgers. Instead, you heard [crickets].” While acknowledging the league’s “cowardice” in its reluctance to speak out—especially after it recently amended its website to remove references to its DEI programs—Hill still holds out hope for a more principled stance from an organization that played a pivotal role in breaking baseball’s color barrier.
Ultimately, the best players on the championship team that visited Trump at the White House owe their opportunities to the groundbreaking work of Jackie Robinson and the leadership of the Brooklyn Dodgers of his era. Hill stated, “Without Jackie Robinson, there is no Mookie Betts, and there is no Shohei Ohtani. If you’re not willing to defend the name and legacy of the most important player in baseball’s history against the same white supremacy, then I have to wonder if what Jackie Robinson fought for was even worth it.”
Even now, as during the previous Trump administration, Hill continues to voice her criticisms regarding the president and the ongoing issues that intertwine with the world of sports.
