First-Ever African Little League Team Denied Visas to U.S.

[The Straight Story]

First-Ever African Little League Team Denied Visas to U.S.

After coming so close last year to becoming the first team from Africa to play in the Little League World Series, players from Uganda had their hopes dashed again this year. But the obstacle had nothing to do with baseball.

Some of the players of the Rev. John Foundation Little League team from Kampala were denied entry into the United States to play in the Williamsport, Pennsylvania, series because they could not provide sufficient paperwork for visas.

In Uganda, birth certificates are not commonly issued, and without proper proof of age and identity, the State Department would not issue visas to everyone on the team.

The team nearly qualified for the World Series last year after beating Saudi Arabia in a qualifying tournament, but they then lost the next day to Kuwait and were eliminated because of a bizarre tiebreaker rule that punished them for scoring two runs in the final inning of their game against Kuwait. Because of a quirk in the rules, a scoreless final inning would have advanced them to the final. This year the Ugandan team qualified by defeating a team from Saudi Arabia that was primarily made up of the children of Americans working abroad.

http://www.allgov.com/US_and_the_World/ViewNews/First_Ever_African_Little_League_Team_Denied_Visas_to_US_110731

[LiberalFighter]

1. I have absolutely no sympathy.

They would need the same documentation just to play in the game. They have to have proof they are who they are and are qualified based on their age.

[Name removed]

2. Deleted message

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[treestar]

3. why not just issue Birth Certificates?

they presumably are going to issue passports.

Reports of birth can be made - these kids are still young, so their mothers and town officials who personally know who they are and when and where they are born could make sworn statements.

It would be simple to prove. And they are obviously kids.

[geckosfeet]

4. Third world nations are simply not as uptight about paperwork as we are.

The kids played well and deserved to compete internationally. If anything I fault the adult organizers for not foreseeing this as an issue when traveling overseas - especially in the world we find ourselves in today.

[jberryhill]

8. They had, but the team roster changed

While it is true that the "uptightness" about paperwork is an accurate observation, it is also true that in an age-restricted athletic competition, there needs to be a reasonably certain method of determining who is eligible to play.

[FSogol]

5. Calling Orly Taitz: That's how Obama probably got into the country!11!

:eyes: :crazy:

[dembotoz]

6. can any of them play at a pro level?

i am sure a number of universities or pro ball organizations would be able to find a way around the paperwork problem....

[madrchsod]

7. the coach should have taken care of the visa problem.

maybe next year!

[William769]

9. The pride of Ugandans.

[dsc]

10. We wouldn't have let the Hitler youth come here in 1939

and neither should we let this team. They represent a government which literally kill gay people.