(Rightallegiance.com) – A New York woman, Aura Moody, has filed a $2 million lawsuit against the New York Mets, alleging that she was barred from entering Citi Field for wearing a “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) hat. Moody, who was attending a Mets home game on August 14 against the Oakland Athletics with members of the Queens Village Republican Club, claims she was stopped by a staff member who told her the hat was “too political” and not allowed in the stadium, according to a report from the New York Post.
Moody attempted to argue that barring her from entering based on her attire violated her First Amendment rights, but she was still required to return the hat to her car before being allowed entry.
Once inside the stadium, she alleges that she saw other White members of her group wearing MAGA attire, leading her to believe she was being treated differently. Her lawsuit accuses the Mets of “racial discrimination and political retaliation” as well as causing “reputational harm.”
“This country is supposed to be the beacon of freedom for all,” Moody told the New York Post, expressing her frustration with how she was treated.
The Mets have yet to respond directly to the lawsuit, but back in August, a spokesperson for the team acknowledged that the staff member who denied Moody entry had been “mistaken about our attire policy.” The Mets spokesperson also stated that the organization planned to reach out to Moody to offer an apology and invite her back to the stadium.
This isn’t the only incident involving the MAGA hat and sports venues. Just this week, the Arizona Cardinals had to issue an apology after a woman was similarly told to remove her MAGA hat before entering State Farm Stadium for a game between the Cardinals and the Los Angeles Rams.
In a statement, the Cardinals explained that a stadium security member had misunderstood their policy on prohibited items and confirmed that political attire like hats did not fall under the ban. “We have also reached out to the individual involved to communicate that their experience was not consistent with our policies and practices and to apologize for that,” the team’s statement read.
The Arizona Cardinals and New York Mets incidents underscore the challenges that stadiums face in navigating political symbols and attire while maintaining neutrality and adhering to venue-specific policies. Moody’s lawsuit could set a precedent for how venues handle such situations in the future.