A unanimous vote Tuesday by the University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees decided that Marge Schott’s name will be removed from the university baseball stadium.
University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees unanimously votes to remove Marge Schott’s name from the campus baseball stadium. #Bearcats
— Justin Williams (@Williams_Justin) June 23, 2020
The decision, effective immediately, will remove Schott’s name from the stadium and the university archives in the library, per ESPN. University president Neville Pinto recommended the removal of the name after a petition to remove Schott’s name received thousands of signatures. (RELATED: REPORT: MLB And MLBPA Negotiations Accelerate As 40 Players Test Positive For COVID-19)
The baseball stadium was named Marge Schott Stadium in 2006 after the school received a $2 million dollar donation from the Marge and Charles J. Schott Foundation, reported ESPN. In 1993, the MLB banned the former owner of the Cincinnati Reds after she made racist comments towards Black players and team staff.
Schott was also banned from Riverfront Stadium, the old home of the Reds, and day-to-day operations of the Reds in 1996 due to comments about Adolf Hitler, according to ESPN. Schott sold her controlling interest in the Reds in 1999. She passed away in 2004.
it blows my mind there was anything on this planet named after Marge Schott.
She repeatedly praised Hitler, kept a Nazi armband in her house and on multiple public occasions used the n-word.
It’s astonishing that her name remained on anything & yet ppl are defending her. https://t.co/S0CO3qSJNU
— Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) June 23, 2020
“Marge Schott’s record of racism and bigotry stands at stark odds with our University’s core commitment to dignity, equity and inclusion,” said Pinto in a statement obtained by ESPN, “I hope this action serves as an enduring reminder that we cannot remain silent or indifferent when it comes to prejudice, hate or inequity. More than ever, our world needs us to convert our values into real and lasting action.”
The Schott’s Foundation encouraged discussion about naming rights and encouraged people to learn from the mistakes of the contributors for which the foundation is named, per ESPN. “We appreciate what these great organizations bring to Cincinnati and we fully support the decisions made by the organizations who have received grants from the Foundation,” said the foundation in a statement.