Trump does the Tomahawk Chop with Braves fans at World Series
David J. Phillip
Former President Donald Trump and his wife Melania perform the tomahawk chop before for Game 4 of baseball's World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Only months after calling for a boycott of Major League Baseball, former President Donald Trump did the tomahawk chop with Atlanta Braves fans at Game 4 of the World Series on Saturday night.
Trump stood beside his wife, Melania, as he chopped away with fans before the game between the Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros from a private suite.
Despite widespread condemnation by Native Americans and many others, both the Braves name and the Tomahawk Chop have remained fixtures at Atlanta baseball games. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred backed the taunt and the name earlier this week.
The chop, a stadium-wide chant and longtime tradition at Braves games, has been under renewed scrutiny as part of a national discussion about racism and racial imagery in professional sports.
Several advocacy groups and observers have accused the chant of mocking Native American groups and decried it as racist. But many Braves fans, including Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, have dismissed the criticism, and the stadium has led the fans in doing the chant in both Games 3 and 4 of the series.
Trump has frequently sought to capitalize politically on such controversies as part of an effort to galvanize the white voters who make up much of his political base.
Atlanta fans cheered for the 45th president when he was seen. It was a stark contrast to the loud boos Trump got in Washington, D.C. from Nationals fans during the 2019 World Series.
The Astros, who appeared in both Series, have not had the chance to host Trump. But they did win the last game he attended, Game 5 in 2019, and took a 1-0 lead in the first inning Saturday.
Earlier Saturday, Trump claimed he was invited to the game by Major League Baseball and Yankees president Randy Levine. However, MLB said Trump initiated the plan.
In Cobb County, the Atlanta suburb where Truist Park sits, Trump got 42% of the vote in 2020. President Joe Biden got 56%.
