Theo Epstein of the Cubs: a supporter who made a racist banished gesture from Wrigley Field | Bleacher's report

Theo Epstein vehemently denounced the anonymous supporter spotted making a racist gesture during the broadcast of the Chicago Cubs game Tuesday night against the Miami Marlins at Wrigley Field.

"The incident last night is really disgusting," said the baseball operations club president during a conversation with reporters prior to Wednesday night's game by NBC Chicago. "It gave me shivers to look at this, to see that it was happening at Wrigley Field, and we have clearly shown how unacceptable this behavior is, and there is no room for it. that in society, at baseball and at Wrigley Field.The person responsible for this gesture will never be welcomed at Wrigley Field. "

Cubs' commercial president, Crane Kenney, also said his team would not tolerate this type of behavior: "Anyone who behaves in this way will not only be removed from the stadium, but will be banned from Wrigley Field."

One could see the hand of the unidentified fan making a gesture associated with white supremacists behind NBC Sports Chicago reporter Doug Glanville, who is black.

Glanville released Wednesday a statement in which he attributed in part the support of the Cubs:

In September 2018, the Boston Globeof Michael Andor Brodeur has detailed the evolution of the "game of the circle" into a much more sinister symbol of the movement of white power:

"The rise and fall and the rise (and fall) of the OK gesture is not a particularly exciting story, but it's a complicated story." Beginning in the date and wet caves of 4chan, " Operation O-KKK "was launched by an anonymous group of posters as a potentially powerful fishing methodology, consisting simply of taking the once innocuous gesture and superimposing a new (possibly?) misleading sense.

[…]

"But the time, the elasticity of language and several vivid and involuntary forces conspired together to change" OK "- if it is not a symbol of white supremacy, it is at least a vase allowing him to enter clandestinely into the speech and move to visible view while retaining a plausible denial ".

Specific to what happened Tuesday night behind an unknown Glanville, Kenney said that the organization is being investigated. "Any derogatory behavior must be immediately reported to our baseball staff," he added (h / t WGN Larry Hawley).