The Dodgers reached glory on Saturday by winning the Major League series for the second consecutive time. No one can take away the value of what they represent for the city of Los Angeles, but no title or achievement exempts this institution from the debt it owes to the Latino community.
For months, this organization has been criticized for the silence of its owner, Mark Walter, regarding the immigration raids that have struck Los Angeles since the beginning of Donald Trump’s presidency.
Walter and the Dodgers have refused to make a public statement; at most, they have supposedly donated one million dollars to a contingency fund managed by City Hall. And I say “supposedly” because activists have demanded clarification about the whereabouts of that million, which apparently disappeared along the way—no immigrant family has been identified as a beneficiary of those funds.
Mark Walter needs to understand something clearly. It’s not just about the immigration raids—it’s the Latino heritage that defines the city of Los Angeles. If Walter thinks Los Angeles is “bleeding blue,” he should think twice. Before it was blue, Los Angeles was **brown—Latina—**from its origins to this very day. Not supporting Latinos is not supporting Los Angeles; it’s not supporting the city’s history and heritage.
Immigration defines Los Angeles. Mark Walter doesn’t have to look far to understand that—he just needs to look at his team’s roster:
Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Roki Sasaki (Japan); Teoscar Hernández (Dominican Republic); Miguel Rojas (Venezuela); Hyeseong Kim (South Korea); Enrique “Kiké” Hernández (Puerto Rico); and Andy Pages (Cuba), among others.
The Dodgers would not have achieved this back-to-back championship without the immigrants on their roster—just as Los Angeles would not have its rich history without its immigrants.
No, the Latino community has not forgiven Mark Walter. If this billionaire wants to transcend his legacy, an apology during Monday’s victory parade would be a good start. How beautiful it would be to see his players thanking Latinos—the 40 percent of their fan base that has supported them tirelessly. This victory has a purpose: to heal the wounds that exist in this city.
Walter is also the CEO of Guggenheim Partners, a financial firm managing over $325 billion in assets. Guggenheim holds a 0.38% stake in the GEO Group, a private prison corporation that operates ICE detention centers. Based on the GEO Group’s current valuation of $3.39 billion, Guggenheim’s stake amounts to over $12 million invested in the company’s operations.
Latinos violently detained by ICE are imprisoned there.
Walter, the Latino community wants to hear from you. Transcend what your legacy will represent for Los Angeles.
