This is yet another story yielded by the Big Cleaning. I've found lots of little tidbits, such as Rod Blagojevich trying to ban milk in Illinois schools, but many of them never seemed to become actual policy.
Unfortunately, many stories reported on actual events, not mere proposals. In 2005, the Tampa Sports Authority discriminated against disabled Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans who attended games at Raymond James Stadium. The agency sent a form letter to fans who used wheelchairs saying that sealed wheelchair cushions were no longer allowed at games. The letter said cushions must now have an opening so they can be opened up and inspected when fans entered the stadium.
This subjected disabled fans to more intensive scrutiny than other spectators – thus violating the Americans with Disabilities Act. But why was anyone subjected to major scrutiny at all? It was because this was when the NFL was instituting its new pat-down searches of fans.
One of the nobodies with the sports authority said they were "bending over backwards to accommodate" disabled fans. That's a load of roo gas - reminiscent of the news report where wealthy agribusiness owners complained that farm workers got too many rights. The agency suggested a "remedy" in which bomb-sniffing dogs would inspect the cushion. Seriously, they said that.
Because the ACLU actually cared about civil liberties back then – unlike today – the group had a lawsuit against the NFL's invasive pat-downs.
In the years since, the NFL has gotten more and more abusive. Like the rest of North America's big league sports industry, the NFL was ear-deep in the COVID-inspired fascism of a year or two ago. I think it's time for Congress to revoke the antitrust exemptions of the NFL, Major League Baseball, and other sports leagues.
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