Be Patriotic or Leave!
April 17, 2009 by Cherie Burbach
Filed under Sports Rumors
A New York Yankee fan is suing the team because he was ejected from a game. Apparently he went to use the bathroom while the song “God Bless America” was playing, and that’s a no-no at Yankee Stadium.
Bradford Campeau-Laurion also says cops at the stadium immediately twisted his arms behind him and marched him toward the exit, where he was told to “leave the country if he didn’t like it.” The guy claims he is “proud to be an American but objects to being required to participate in displays of patriotism.”
The thing I keep coming back to with all of this is that it’s a free country. While I think everyone should respect things like the national anthem and “God Bless America,” I have a hard time treating someone like dirt because they aren’t into it. This guy wasn’t flipping off the cameras during the playing of the song, he was completely out of sight in the bathroom.
Here’s the other thing. I hate that people feel the need to sue someone because their rights have been violated, but yet would we be talking about this if he hadn’t? Probably not.
What’s your opinion on this? Does this guy have a genuine legal case? Should he have been treated this way for not staying in his seat to honor the song?
Image: sxc.hu.
It’s sad that he has to sue, but I’m firmly in his corner. How can anyone find it acceptable to force someone to stay in his/her seat for a song? I don’t care WHAT the song is.
In this case, I’m not so much worried about the possible violation of his rights, though. If nothing else, it’s also a clear-cut breaking of the contract that the stadium has entered into with the customer. He paid his money, and outside of extreme circumstances, he is entitled to have a seat at that ballgame. I’m going out on a limb, but since stadiums have bathroom facilities, there’s probably an assumption that people will leave their seats and use those facilities – and no reason to assume that the stadium will decide WHEN people do so.
Angie, I’m with you all the way. I think people should be patriotic, but to actually boot someone out of a game because they went to the bathroom is a bit much. It’s not like he stood there yelling and screaming so other people couldn’t hear the song. Besides that, what is someone really DOES have to use the bathroom?