Its more like cowardly, and meatheaded. More must be done to bring people together through meaningful change. Its appalling how heavily-to-tightly-managed entities, especially those controlled by a small cluster of well-heeled egos turn into shuddering eunuchs at the thought of riling just an ugly faction of its consumer base. You can change your choices at any time by clicking on the 'Privacy dashboard' links on our sites and apps. 260 14th St. NW NFL Owner Political Donations: Who Gave to Obama AND Rubio? - The Big Lead When you find common solutions that work for everybody and [are] respectful of everybody to represent the best of you. A little shaky now. PDF Arthur blank politics Blank also contributed $28,500 to the Obama Victory Fund in 2008. And now their story is a page-turning novel. I do know it is hard. The perceived linebetween politics and sports further blurred when Major League Baseball's union chief said players are ready to discuss moving the 2021 MLB All-Star Game out of Truist Park. << Arthur Blank, Atlanta Falcons - Sports Illustrated And that's one of our core values as well: Include everybody. I am, in a certain sense. Also watchRISING UP: A Westside Story,a documentary film by David Lewis Productions that gives viewers a detailed look into the ideation, construction, and impact of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium on the city of Atlanta. So, we had great confidence in our own abilities. /SMask /None>> Sign up for notifications from Insider! Max died when Arthur was 15, leaving his mother to grow what became a multi-million-dollar business. He fielded multiple quarterback-related questions and spoke glowingly of Ridder, who. Blank allowed the previous front office to make shortsighted moves that still are costing the. The Atlanta media thrashed Arthur Smith, Terry Fontenot, and Arthur Blank about their interest level sometime after the news broke. The public discourse on these and other issues is too divisive, too political. We sold out the entire stadium in two-and-a-half hours. In 2014 it emerged that Bruce Levenson, who owned the NBAs Atlanta Hawks, had written an email that amongst other things theorized that the black crowd [at Philips Arena] scared away the whites, adding for good measure: I have even bitched that the kiss cam is too black. Levenson later that year sold his stake in the franchise, and the Hawks have worked hard to win back their black audience. And myself, if you will, I'm at the very bottom of the pyramid as a servant leader and somebody who is there to provide leadership, but also provide whatever that needs to be done for us to be successful. And it's all connected not only to associates, but to the communities in which we live and operate. And so from there, since the 2001- 2002 season, we've only had three games that were not sold out during the season. Michael Vicks published letter, Atlanta, nearly made a whole city cry on the eve of the Super Bowl. If you go to a Home Depot shareholders meeting, they start out every single meeting for 42 years now with this value wheel that we developed. 9. And the great political leaders in the past, they were civil and they were good listeners. !, And listen to me, be careful where you are getting your information to JOIN protests!! And that's all part of his story of redemption and his story of being a changed person. "It's not a red issue or a blue issue, it's about how you treat people, whether it be guests, fans, customers, associates, or shareholders in the case with HD," said Blank, whose Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation has granted over $800 million to help underserved people across the nation. Full statement from Arthur Blank: https://t.co/1lU870TGWa pic.twitter.com/0qejiahKKY, Please, please stop this violence!! [Thats] something that I talk about in the book, which most people are not aware of. But thus far Blank and those connected to the stadium appear committed to using this opportunity as one to enhance and not exploit this community. !, Do not fall for this foolishness!!! 8 . Falcons owner Arthur Blank spoke with reporters during a 10-minute teleconference from the Super Bowl. Sadly, sometimes these young men and women get involved in that cycle and they never get out of it. In their sixth season of Major League Soccer, the Five Stripes bring some new faces onto the field this year. One reporter asked Fontenot whether he thought the Falcons were getting Watson. The statement reads: "We are at our very best. Our history of voting rights is a constant struggle, a repetitive cycle of expansion followed by restriction. The Atlanta Falcons new stadium is going to be beautiful. The next thing is making sure you exercise your political bully power and going to local elections and beating up the politicians you dont like., It is time to beat up prosecutors you dont like at the voting booth. Arthur Blank gives $17M to National Center for Civil and Human Rights He released a statement five days after Gov. We must not accept or condone violence in any way. That coming the day before the New York Times dropped the bomb(s) about Gruden calling the NFL commissioner a faggot, ripping the leagues concussion protocols, (in other words, Grudens pro-concussion) and trading nudie pictures of cheerleaders. And so think about the implications of the choices you're making for yourself and for your loved ones, etc. This isnt just a short-cut, this is a long-term play with significant input and investment into the community and its future, said Scott Jenkins, the general manager of Mercedes-Benz Stadium, to The Daily Beast. A reckless high-profile meathead, now out the $60 million remaining on his contract. My suspicion is that while Dungy and Tirico and dozens if not hundreds of other NFL leaders may have been surprised by Grudens racist imagery, they arent as unfamiliar with his other boys club stupidity. And he had to mop the floors for weeks and months on end. But, you know, I think the word civility is terribly important today in the political world in which we just don't see it the way we need to see it. Its also part memoir of how his ethics evolved from watching his father run a neighborhood pharmacy in Queens, New York, to launching multi-billion dollar ventures. And I think this should be addressed out of respect and out of listening.". [/Pattern /DeviceRGB] That was in 1979. And there are two [robbers] and they want to know, "Where's the money, where's the cash?" 5 Other Blank family businesses include the nationwide PGA TOUR Superstore as well as a handful of ranches across the country. 17. Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank is married to Angela Macuga, his third wife. I have what's called a veil state, or I am a stutterer. The system has worked well for the multi-billionaire and co-founder of The Home Depot. But I know that his essence, at his heart and his soul, is a really good person that cares deeply about humanity. (To his enormous credit, Leibovich burned up all the access his name and the Times brand afforded him to tell a story the average sports writer only dares hint at.) Falcons Owner Arthur Blank Gave Nearly $40,000 to Joe Biden and In 1978, both he and future Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank were fired during a corporate power struggle at Handy Dan. People are scared and in pain. Since then, they have re-organized their focus areas more specifically into four groups: policy advocacy, organizing and civic engagement, impact litigation, and legal services. The NFL could and should be a leader among other giant corporations in taking stark stands against belligerent stupidity like racism (which it is sort of good at in a lipservice/signage kind of way, considering 70% of its players are black) and sexism (where it has a long ways to go, despite promoting Breast Cancer Awareness Month with pink shoes), but also right now for wait for it COVID vaccinations. Like all stories meant to inspire, he takes some knocks. Team owner Arthur Blank, who has high expectations for the franchise, sat down with FOX 5 Atlanta one-on-one to talk football, philanthropy, and Kanye West. Home Depot co-founders pictured in 1979, a year after the first store opened. We had a different leader [Robert Nardelli ] in place that was eventually replaced. It's the customers. Stop feeding fear and anger every day. . authenticate users, apply security measures, and prevent spam and abuse, and, display personalised ads and content based on interest profiles, measure the effectiveness of personalised ads and content, and, develop and improve our products and services. Our frontline associates and all those businesses come next. If you sit in your homes instead of burning your home to the ground, you will have time to properly plot, plan, strategize and organize and mobilize in effective ways., Two of the most effective ways is first taking your butt to the computer and making sure you fill out your census so that people know who you are and where you are. However, peaceful protests really go back and look at the history of our country back to the Boston Tea Party. Hopefully we'll get back in the playoffs, but not as well as the first three years. /Width 625 The ones in Atlanta on Friday started off peaceful but later turned into violent demonstrations and looting of local businesses. But COVID vaccination, as a consequence of being made "political" by belligerent partisans, many of whom love football more than life itself, is terrifying territory for the NFL. Arthur Blank On Michael Vick, Bernie Marcus, And How He'd Run The U.S. I love CNN, I love Cartoon Network. In that way, I don't think my personality, probably, or my patience level probably is not the level it would have to be to sustain myself in this political atmosphere today. You know, he uses the phrase community of chaos, that we move away from chaos and towards community and community in a very broad sense, community with each other. But go ahead and do it, if that's what you want. So we did it. Political Donations: Blank has largely donated to Democratic causes, most notably: $32,400 to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in 2013; $28,500 to the Obama Victory Fund in '08; and. But my mother would say to me, You know, what you have to say is important. But Its All Too Familiar. And they found ways to get things done with people who had a little bit a different view but found that commonality that was really important. When I left [Home Depot] in 2001, [it] was the second largest retailer in the world, second only to Wal-Mart. Continued: https://t.co/yePGJUaGVV, Ive got a lot of love and respect for police officers., We dont want to see Targets burning. It's the fans. And at the top of that is who is being served comes first. Hes a combination of father and brother to me. But Blank regularly speaks on business school campuses, where future leaders and executives tell him they are anxious about the environment, the wealth gap, racial and gender inequities, and a litany of examples of corporate malfeasance. >> Liz Cheney Aint Going Nowhere in This Republican Party, Jensens Abortion Ban Promises Come Back to Haunt Him, Thanks to Oppo. ", It is your duty not to burn your own house down for anger with an enemy We have to be better than this moment. You need to figure out something else to do for the rest of your life. And after a while, he said, Would you please shut up? And she never did. February 4, 2021 4:12 pm ET. That Vote for Secretary of State? Despite being widowed at a young age, his mother managed the familys mail-order pharmaceutical business and sold it to a large retail conglomerate. I mean, it wasn't like, You're Republican or Democrat. "His approach obviously is different. that those rights were not being fully reflected in our society today. We sit down with New York Times theater critic Jesse Green to discuss Rodgers' autobiography, Shy. After stepping down as CEO of Home Depot in the early 2000s, Blanks interests centered on a variety of Atlanta-based sports franchises and the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, a private foundation that has awarded over $560 million. But he was. By all accounts, those associated with the new stadium and the Westside view their presence as at least a 10-20 year commitment toward revitalizing a downtrodden community and bringing the city together. . Arthur Blank talks sensible gun reform. /BitsPerComponent 8 All Rights Reserved. And so he speaks to people throughout the United States, young people primarily, about that. Here, using insidegov.com's database, are the disclosed political donations* for majority NFL owners dating back to the 2008 election. On Thursday, Falcons owner Arthur Blank's foundation donated a five-year, $17 million grant to the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta. Shrinking from conflict over something as valid, real and life-protecting as a vaccine is not what Id call, manly, brave, courageous or patriotic. Among Blanks diverse interests are the nationwide PGA Tour Superstore chain, three guest ranches in Montana, and a family foundation that counts millions in economic development investments on Atlantas beleaguered Westside among its $660-million outlay to date. This station is part of Cox Media Group Television. GPBs Virginia Prescott asked Blank about some of those stories in a conversationpresented in collaboration with Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlantas Book Festival in Your Living Room, the National JCC Literary Consortium and the Atlanta History Center. Arthur Blanks talks football, philanthropy, and Kanye West - FOX 5 Atlanta In a time when more than half of Americans are dissatisfied with the state of our democracy, the most powerful way to demonstrate and have our voices heard is through the vote. Looting is NOT THE ANSWER!!!! Arthur Blank is worried that capitalism is getting a bad rap. This is not in the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr. 14, He also had three children with his second wife of 16 years, Stephanie Blank.