Tigers color analyst Jack Morris has been suspended indefinitely from Detroit’s TV broadcasts after he spoke in an offensive accent when talking about Angels star Shohei Ohtani on Tuesday night.
In the top of the ninth inning of Tuesday’s game with the Angels’ Juan Lagares at-bat, Morris and Tigers play-by-play announcer Matt Shepard were discussing how the team should approach pitching to Ohtani, the Japanese two-way star who was up next. Shepard asked, “Now what do you do with Shohei Ohtani?” Morris replied in an apparent Asian accent, “Be very, very careful.”
Morris later apologized during Ohtani’s at-bat.
“Well folks, Shohei Ohtani is coming to the plate, and it’s been brought to my attention — and I sincerely apologize if I offended anybody, especially anybody in the Asian community for what I said about pitching and being careful to, about Shohei Ohtani,” Morris said. “I did not intend for any offensive thing and I apologize if I did (offend).
Let me be abundantly clear:
I am not okay with what Jack Morris said. I am constantly advising storytellers and public speakers to not use accents in their stories and speeches. I’ve actually written about this very subject in my book, Storyworthy. I’ve stated publicly in print that it’s a terrible idea.
Insensitive and wrong.
But here’s what I am thinking:
Maybe we should allow Jack Morris to make a mistake, apologize for that mistake, and move on. Maybe the indefinite suspension and bias training isn’t necessary. Maybe the 12 years and thousands of hours Jack Morris has spent broadcasting on the radio in a respectful, appropriate way should count for something.
Maybe his 18 year, unblemished, Hall of Fame career in Major League Baseball should also count for something.
Morris tried to make a joke. A bad, insensitive, inappropriate joke.
The man attempted to be funny in a way that was both not funny and racially insensitive. His broadcast partner immediately told him how inappropriate it was. Morris apologized.
Can’t he apologize with sincerity, learn from this mistake, and move on?
And yes, I know that some people were also dissatisfied with the quality of his apology. It’s admittedly not a perfect apology. But I have no patience for the apology police. Not every apology is perfect. Those who love to jump on anyone whose apology is not perfect should find better targets for their ire.
Please don’t get me wrong:
Had Morris expressed support for white supremacists or Neo-Nazis, I would feel differently. Had he implied that people of Japanese descent are not equal to people of European descent, I would feel differently. Had he insulted the country of Japan in some way, I would feel differently. Had this not been his first offense after broadcasting more than 2,000 baseball games, I would feel differently.
He did none of these things. He poorly and insensitively imitated the stereotyped accent of a Japanese person speaking English in an attempt to be funny.
Stupid for sure. Racially insensitive for sure. But worthy of an indefinite suspension given his track record?
I don’t think so.
Two years ago, during an online storytelling workshop with a group of international high school students, I told a student to stop acting like a savage when she told me that she’d clean up the dog poop off her bedroom floor after my lesson.
After the lesson was finished, my teaching assistant, a 19 year-old woman named Grace, called me to educate me on the origin of the word “savage.” She explained that it was a word used by white explorers and colonialists in order to justify the murder of indigenous people.
I had no idea. I used that word all the time.
Grace treated me with respect, kindness, and… well, grace. She afforded me an opportunity to learn. I listened, read more about the subject on my own, then I apologized to the student the following day.
Then I thanked Grace for the way she handled the situation.
Did I deserve an indefinite suspension?
Should I have been sent to bias training?
I don’t think so.
I think we get to make certain mistakes without the hammer of human resources swinging down upon us.
I think we need to be open to people pointing out our mistakes. I think we need to approach these moments with an open mind and open heart. But I also think we should be afforded the opportunity to learn from our mistakes, apologize, and move on, absent the loss of income, need for training, and public shaming associated with a suspension.
Not in all cases, of course.
Had Jack Morris broadcast his admiration for the Proud Boys or denigrated women or perpetuated conspiracy theories about vaccines or the Capitol insurrection, I would have no problem with an indefinite suspension and bias training at the vey least.
But in the case of a stupid, racially insensitive attempt at humor?
I think an expression of understanding and regret, followed by an apology, might have been enough.
