The parents of Mets catcher Rod Barajas came to the United States from Mexico, and he lives in Arizona. So Naturally, the new immigration law passed in that state has drawn his attention, and his ire.
Barajas was born in Ontario, Calif., three years after his parents moved there from Mexico. His father is from Mexicali and mother is from Michoacan, and his older brother was born in Mexico, too.
"It's disappointing," Barajas said. "I have a lot of family born in Mexico. You would like to hope there is no stereotyping going on, but it's hard to see that there would not be. If they happen to pull someone over who looks like they are of Latin descent, even if they are a U.S. citizen, that is the first question that is going to be asked. But if a blond-haired, blue-eyed Canadian gets pulled over, do you think they are going to ask for their papers? No."
Barajas addressed an issue that is important to him and his family. As a U.S. citizen, Barajas has less to worry about than many other major league players who came here from other countries to work legally as baseball players.
Some have not been in the U.S. very long and do not speak English fluently. Barajas wonders if they, too, could be singled out or harassed along with illegal immigrants. On Friday, the Major League Baseball Players Association issued a statement criticizing the law.
That made Barajas very proud. "I'm 100 percent behind the union," he said. "There's got to be a better way than this. It's just not fair. It's not fair to us." Or no group at all.
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