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Red Sox post large 'Black Lives Matter' billboard outside Fenway Park

After admitting that racial slurs directed at Black players have been a frequent occurrence at Fenway Park over the years, the Boston Red Sox have erected a sizable response outside the stadium.

A black and white billboard reading “Black Lives Matter” in the trademark Red Sox font was put up outside Fenway along the Massachusetts Turnpike on Wednesday.

The billboard is just one of the messages seen from the Red Sox and the rest of MLB in the wake of the killing of George Floyd and subsequent protests.

After MLB commissioner Rob Manfred pledged the league would push for change, MLB players will be wearing “Black Lives Matter” and “United for Change” jersey patches and T-shirts on opening day, and pitching mounds will feature similar messages. Manfred’s pledge was also accompanied by donations toward racial justice causes by MLB’s 30 baseball operations heads.

As for the Red Sox, the team backed up former MLB outfielder Torii Hunter’s recollection of hearing the N-word 100 times while playing at Boston, to the point that he had constantly requested a no-trade clause against the Red Sox in his contracts.

It’s not often a team acknowledges its own historic stadium is also a source of racial slurs.

As opening days nears, Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke has said he will support any of his players who take a knee during the national anthem, per MassLive.

A Black Lives Matter overlooking the Massachusetts Turnpike in the Red Sox's font with the Red Sox logo at the end.
That's some visible real estate outside Fenway Park. (Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images)

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