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A fan ejected from Tuesday's Red Sox game will be banned from Fenway Park for life after using a racial slur in a conversation with another fan.
"It's disheartening," Red Sox president Sam Kennedy said. "Saddening. Maddening. That said, we have to recognize that this exists in our culture. It exists in Boston and it exists in other cities around the world. It's not an indictment on Boston and this marketplace. It's an indictment on the ignorant people and intolerant people who utter these words, who say these things, and they need to be held accountable."
The incident happened one night after Orioles center fielder Adam Jones spoke out about hearing racial taunts from at least one fan while playing center field at Fenway Park on Monday. Kennedy and owner John Henry apologized to Jones in person, and the Fenway crowd gave Jones a standing ovation before his first at-bat on Tuesday.
Kennedy said Tuesday's incident did not involve Jones. It occurred soon after the national anthem was performed. Two fans were having some sort of conversation when one of the fans used "derogatory, unacceptable language" to discuss the anthem performance. The other fan asked the offending fan to repeat and confirm what was said, then informed stadium security, who responded with an immediate ejection.
The offending fan was notified yesterday of his permanent ban from the stadium.
"It's unprecedented, so it may be difficult (to enforce)," Kennedy said. "But I can tell you, this was an individual game buyer, not a season-ticket holder. There are ways. We have eyes and ears on the ballpark. But we may not be perfect, we may not get it exactly right, but we have informed this person that they are no longer welcome at Fenway. Our security knows, and we're dealing with it in real time as you can tell. We're going to work hard to do our best to enforce it."
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