On Monday this week, what was meant to be a celebration of Latinx heritage was marred by scenes in the Wrigley Field bleachers. A fight broke out during a Hispanic Heritage Night baseball game, with racial slurs shouted at Hispanic fans at the conclusion of the Chicago Cubs' 5-1 loss to the Pirates.
The incident was partially caught on film and shared on Twitter by Danny Rockett, who hosts a podcast about the Cubs team. It's unclear what exactly caused the fight from the video, but witnesses reportedly claimed that the men had been shouting racial slurs at the Hispanic men and women during the 7th inning. Though security initially broke up the argument, tempers soon ran high once again.
In the first of the two videos, a man can be heard swearing and seemingly shouting a racial slur about Hispanic women, prompting further fighting. In the second video, a man can clearly be heard shouting further racial slurs. While this man, who appears to be an Indiana National Guard member, claims that another man "threw the first punch," he can be seen repeatedly punching another in the face during the brawl, and continues to provoke the other group after the fight is broken up.
After the Hispanic fans were escorted away, this man has an angry reaction to being filmed by Rockett.
"Don't record me," he says, before lurching towards the phone, while security staff (in red shirts) claim that they are not allowed to record on "private property". Before the video ends, someone off-screen can be heard saying that "if my unit sees that, I'm dead".
Security guards eventually break up the fight and usher the Hispanic fans away from the bleachers. As they are led away, one of the fans accused the security of "taking the white people's side", and a woman tearfully points at the security, stating that they will "never know what it feels like".
The Indiana National Guard didn't confirm who the member caught on film is, but did release a statement to the Chicago Sun Times:
"The statements made by this individual are not in keeping with the Army Values, and they do not reflect the views or beliefs of the United States Armed Forces, and specifically, the Indiana National Guard. We take these types of situations very seriously, and the conduct of this individual is unbecoming of a service member."
A Cubs spokesman later added that security were "incorrect" to say that Rockett was not allowed to film, and denied that they took sides in the event.
"We don’t know the nature of what caused the fight, but both parties were escorted out," they said. "[The Cubs] have zero tolerance against fighting and insensitive language and behaviour. Both parties were informed by police and security that they are not welcomed back to the stadium for 2018."
