St. Louis Alderman Antonio French (D-21st Ward) has introduced a resolution voicing the Board of Aldermen’s opposition to the sale of the Rams football team to any group that includes the divisive radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh.
The resolution reads:
WHEREAS, it has been confirmed that the NFL and the owners of the St. Louis Rams Football Team are entertaining offers to purchase the team; and
WHEREAS, it is absolutely the desire of the people of the City of St. Louis for the Rams to maintain St. Louis as their home and, should the team be sold, that it be purchased by responsible owners that will maintain at least the same level of commitment to and positive impact on the community as the present owners; and
WHEREAS, it has been confirmed that radio host Rush Limbaugh is part of a group of investors who have made a bid to purchase the St. Louis Rams Football team; and
WHEREAS, Rush Limbaugh is a divisive figure in American politics who stated that it is his hope that the President of the United States fail in his efforts to lead our country out of the financial disaster that which our nation is in and which occurred under the past administration; and
WHEREAS, Rush Limbaugh is a racially divisive figure who has made offensive statements touting the “merits” of the African slave trade in America, saying: “I mean, let’s face it, we didn’t have slavery in this country for over 100 years because it was a bad thing. Quite the opposite: Slavery built the South. I’m not saying we should bring it back. I’m just saying it had its merits. For one thing, the streets were safer after dark.”; and
WHEREAS, Rush Limbaugh has made racially divisive and offensive statements about civil rights organizations, saying: “The NAACP should have riot rehearsal. They should get a liquor store and practice robberies.”; and
WHEREAS, Rush Limbaugh has made disparaging remarks about NFL players in the past, saying: “Look, let me put it to you this way: The NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips without any weapons. There, I said it.”; and
WHEREAS, the City of St. Louis has in the past been known for its racial divisions, which members of this Board of Aldermen have worked to help move past and to bring our city together across racial and geographic divisions; and
WHEREAS, it is our fear that the arrival of Rush Limbaugh into the St. Louis community in such a high-profile position as an owner of a team which represents our city to the entire world, could be damaging to the spirit of inclusion and progress that so many of us are working for in our St. Louis community; and
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Aldermen of the City of St. Louis that we pause in our deliberations to call upon the current ownership of the St. Louis Rams to decline any bid to purchase the team offered by Rush Limbaugh due to the damage it may cause to the fabric of our community.
Introduced on the 16th day of October, 2009 by:
Honorable Antonio D. French Alderman 21st Ward
UPDATE: NPR did a story, which ran nationally, on the Rush Limbaugh’s attempt to purchase the Rams. The story features an interview with Alderman French. CLICK HERE to listen.
UPDATE 2: Dave Checketts, the owner of the St. Louis Blues, has dropped Rush Limbaugh from his bid for the Rams. Alderman French will withdraw his resolution since Limbaugh is no longer in the picture.