A newly installed statue at Globe Life Field honoring the Texas Rangers law enforcement agency has drawn scrutiny from a U.S. congressman, who says it glorifies a figure linked to segregation-era resistance to school integration.

Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth, sent a letter to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred and Texas Rangers officials urging the statue’s removal, according to the Dallas Morning News. Veasey raised concerns that the “One Riot, One Ranger” statue commemorates a Texas Ranger associated with efforts to block the integration of Mansfield High School in 1956, following the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Brown v. Board of Education.

“Ballparks should be places where families gather, where children fall in love with the game, and where fans of every race, faith, and background feel welcome,” Veasey wrote in the letter, obtained by the Dallas Morning News. “Honoring a figure tied to resisting school integration – and doing so with imagery that evokes racist violence – sends exactly the wrong message about who belongs in that space.”

Veasey also argued that such a tribute undermines the legacy of players who helped integrate Major League Baseball, including Jackie Robinson and Larry Doby, whose breakthroughs in 1947 opened the sport to Black athletes.

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The Rangers installed the 12-foot bronze statue, created by Texas artist Waldine Amanda Tauch, on the left-field concourse at Globe Life Field this week. The work, titled “One Riot, One Ranger,” previously stood at Dallas Love Field for decades before being removed in 2020 amid scrutiny of its historical associations.

In a news release, the Rangers emphasized that the statue commemorates the history of the Texas Rangers law enforcement agency, not any individual figure.

“While the team’s name was originally inspired by the law enforcement agency, the Texas Rangers Baseball Club has forged its own, independent identity since our founding in 1971. The club is proud to recognize the origins of our name and to honor the contributions of public safety professionals across Texas and beyond,” the team said.

Russell S. Molina, chairman of Texas Ranger Bicentennial 2023 and board member of the Texas Ranger Association Foundation, said the installation “honors all current, retired, and deceased Texas Rangers” and reflects the agency’s professionalism and service across Texas’s 254 counties.

The statue joins six other permanent sculptures at Globe Life Field and Choctaw Stadium, honoring figures including Nolan Ryan, Tom Vandergriff, Iván Rodríguez and Adrian Beltré. League and team officials could not immediately be reached for comment on Veasey’s request.

This article originally published at U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey wants Texas Rangers stadium statue removed over segregation ties.