May 18, 2023
Los Angles Dodgers Cancel Honoring LGBTQ Group on Pride Night
Emell Adolphus READ TIME: 2 MIN.
Did the Los Angles Dodgers get cold feet about honoring an LGBTQ group during its Pride Night celebration next month?
It seems so, reported KTLA. The team was all set to present the Los Angeles chapter of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence with its Community Hero Award. But the group seems to have been struck from the event lineup.
Their decision to cancel the award might have something to do with U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who issued a complaint letter to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred accusing the drag nuns of degrading Christians.
"Do you believe that the Los Angeles Dodgers are being 'inclusive and welcoming to everyone' by giving an award to a group of gay and transgender drag performers that intentionally mocks and degrades Christians – and not only Christians, but nuns, who devote their lives to serving others?" Rubio wrote.
The Los Angeles chapter of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence describe themselves as the "leading-edge Order of queer and trans nuns" who use "humor and irreverent wit to expose the forces of bigotry, complacency and guilt that chain the human spirit." Beyond their performances and pageantry, the group is known for their LGBTQ rights and HIV/AIDS activism.
Issuing a response to Rubio and statement about the matter, the Dodgers confirmed that they indeed decided to uninvite the Sisters.
"Given the strong feelings of people who have been offended by the sisters' inclusion in our evening, and in an effort not to distract from the great benefits that we have seen over the years of Pride Night, we are deciding to remove them from this year's group of honorees," the team said in a statement.
While some have praised the move, the Sisters have panned the Dodgers' actions for "succumbing to pressure from persons outside of the State of California and outside of our community."
"While we may no longer appear on Dodgers Pride Night we will be out on the streets of Los Angeles continuing to serve and uplift our community," said the Sisters. "If being true to oneself with love, joy and pride is a sin, then we, having been cancelled by the New York Post, and now the Dodgers, will do what we always do. We will go out and sin some more."
The Los Angeles LGBT Center CEO Joe Hollendoner also called on the Dodgers to not succumb to "out-of-state, right-wing fundamentalists" for "perpetuating a false narrative about LGBTQ+ people."
"We call on the Dodgers to reconsider their decision, honor the Sisters, and bring the true spirit of Pride back to Dodgers Stadium," Hollendoner wrote. "If the decision is not reversed, we strongly encourage the Dodgers to cancel Pride Night. Any organization that turns its back on LGBTQ+ people at this damning and dangerous inflection point in our nation's history should not be hoisting a rainbow flag or hosting a 'Pride Night.'"
The clock is ticking on whether the Dodgers will reconsider.
