Boston

Another Fan Tossed For Using Racial Slur at Fenway Park

For the second time in a week, Red Sox officials say a racial slur was used at Boston's Fenway park during a game.

In a statement, Sox officials said the comment was made during Tuesday night's Sox-Orioles game.

"It was reported to Red Sox security that a racial slur was used in a comment from one fan to another fan. The offending individual was promptly ejected from the ballpark, and has since been notified they are no longer welcome at Fenway Park," the statement read.

NBC Boston spoke with Calvin Hennick who says he heard the comment from the person sitting next to him in the grandstand. Hennick was at the game with his 6-year-old son and father-in-law, who is black.

The family said the incident occurred after the U.S. National Anthem was sung by a young woman from Kenya.

"I asked him to repeat it and he said it again and I said, 'you can't say that'. He said, 'why not' and I repeated it to him and he said, 'yes I stand by it,'" Hennick recalled. "Then later when security confronted him, he denied it. So he's a coward."

Tuesday's slur came after Baltimore Orioles center fielder Adam Jones said someone in the crowd threw a bag of peanuts at him and "called the N-word a handful of times" during Monday night's game. That fan was also removed from the ballpark.

Red Sox President Sam Kennedy contacted Hennick to apologize for the incident. Their seats were also moved during the game.

"There is no place for racial epithets at Fenway Park, in baseball, or in our society. The Red Sox have turned the matter over to the Boston Police Department, who will further investigate with their civil rights unit and determine whether it merits further action," said Sox officials.

On Wednesday, Major League Baseball also announced it is reviewing its security protocols in all 30 stadiums after the incident on Monday.

It's not yet clear what changes might be made, but league officials are starting by figuring out how individual clubs handle fan issues and complaints.

"We have reached out to all 30 clubs to assess what their in-ballpark announcement practices are regarding fan behavior," MLB spokesman Pat Courtney said. "We are also reviewing text message and other fan security notification policies that are operating in the event there is an incident."

All MLB teams have a mechanism for fans to alert security to issues, but individualized ballparks mean different protocols and practices in each stadium.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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