A pro-business group filed a federal lawsuit on Monday against Major League Baseball, claiming it had no right to move the All-Star Game from Atlanta in protest of Georgia’s restrictive voting law.
An Addison, Texas-based organization called Job Creators Network said “thousands of hard-working ordinary men and women in the Atlanta area” had been banking on proceeds from this year’s All-Star Game before: “Defendants took this all away in the blink of an eye.”
Two months ago, MLB announced it was pulling the All-Star Game from Truist Park, the Cobb County home of the Atlanta Braves, days after Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law a host of Republican-backed restrictions, including requiring identification for mail voting and making it illegal to take food or water to voters in line.
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The lawsuit, filed in New York City where MLB headquarters is located, also named MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, the MLB Players Association and union chief Tony Clark as defendants.
The civil suit is asking for $100 million in damages and a punitive award of up to $1 billion.
A MLBPA spokesman declined comment on the lawsuit on Tuesday, while MLB reps could not be immediately reached for comment.
The All-Star Game is now set to be played on July 13 at Coors Field in Denver.
In addition to the high-profile exhibition game — featuring top players of the National and American Leagues — the All-Star Game week includes a host of other events, including a celebrity softball game, the amateur draft, a minor league all-star game and home run derby.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
