Anger and frustration continue to mount over a message that flashed on the SAP Center video board during a San Jose Sharks game over the weekend.
The message appeared to praise and encourage the ongoing United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement crackdown, and it was shown during Saturday’s game honoring Hispanic heritage.
The message read “SJ SHARKS FANS LOVE ICE!! GET’EM BOYZ!”
Councilman Peter Ortiz was at the game to drop the ceremonial puck.
“The whole purpose of the night was to recognize the Latino community and the major fan base that exists in San Jose, especially eastside San Jose,” Ortiz said.
Then the message appeared on the video board.
“Very, very disappointed on the message that was shared on a night we hope to recognize and pay tribute to the Latino community,” Ortiz said.
The Sharks issued the following statement on X Saturday night: “During the first intermission of tonight’s game, an offensively worded message which had been externally submitted was inadvertently displayed on the in-arena scoreboard. Sharks Sports & Entertainment deeply regrets that this message, which does not meet our organization’s values, was not detected during our standard review process. The Sharks organization sincerely apologizes for this oversight, and we are actively working to determine the origin of the message.”
The fallout has sparked a debate over whether the incident is being blown out of proportion, but Ortiz and Mayor Matt Mahan strongly disagree with those trying to dismiss the issue.
“There needs to be accountability at the organization, and I’m calling for an investigation, which I believe the Sharks are willing to do,” Ortiz said. “We need to identify how this occurred. Who is the team that reviews this type of messages? Which policies and procedures need to be changed?”
The San Jose Sharks apologized following a controversial message shown during Saturday’s Hispanic Heritage Night game.
Mahan believes some fences may need to be mended.
“I reached out to the president of the Sharks and encouraged him to sit down with community leaders, leaders in the Latino community and make sure they clear the air, explain what happened, what the investigation has uncovered and what they’ll do differently,” he said.
The Sharks declined an interview request Monday and have not offered any other details about how video board messages are vetted.
The city’s three Latino councilmembers are planning to meet with team executives and community stakeholders within the next week.