The California Senate plans to honor a drag nun. Republicans want her uninvited

Sister Roma is coming to the California Senate, and Republicans aren’t happy about it.

The drag nun, who belongs to the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, is one of 15 guests of honor expected Monday when the Senate is scheduled to approve a resolution proclaiming June LGBTQ Pride Month.

“While the resolution is supportable, the ceremony includes an invitation to a leader of the ‘Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence,’ which is well known for their public denigration of the Catholic faith. We respectfully request the withdrawal of this invitation, as it sends a troubling message to Californians of all faiths,” wrote Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones, R-San Diego, in a letter to Senate President pro Tem Toni Atkins, D-San Diego.

The letter, signed by the entire Senate Republican Caucus, went on to say that it would be “inappropriate and contrary to the values we hold dear” to allow Sister Roma to be honored.

In a statement, Jones called the appearance a distraction from the “countless issues” affecting the state.

Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, also tweeted opposition Thursday to the planned appearance.

“Would the Legislature still honor the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence if they mocked Jews or Muslims? Bigotry & discrimination against any religious group are wrong & have no place in the Capitol,” Gallagher wrote.

The dispute follows the Los Angeles Dodgers’ decision last month to withdraw an invitation to the order to attend an LGBTQ pride event after conservative complaints. The team reversed course and re-invited the Sisters several days later after a backlash of protests.

It also comes in the context of a nationwide Republican effort to crack down on drag performances, with several conservative-controlled state legislatures passing laws restricting or prohibiting them outright. Many LGBTQ activists have warned that this is part of a thinly veiled effort to crack down on transgender people.

Reached for comment, Sister Roma said that the “contradictions in this public statement are actually laughable.”

“How rich of Minority Leader Jones to accuse the Sisters of not sharing the Senate’s values of tolerance and understanding in a letter demanding that my appearance at Monday’s ceremony not be tolerated,” she wrote in an email to The Bee. “The only people making a ‘distraction’ of my inclusion are the conservative voices who refuse to acknowledge that I am not making fun of Catholics or nuns. I am a nun. I’ve devoted more than half my life to community service and fundraising for a multitude of charitable organizations. Whether or not I am disinvited, that work is, in itself, the reward.”

On their website, the Sisters describe themselves as “a 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.”

For 36 years, Sister Roma, dubbed “the most photographed nun in the world,” has served as “one of the of most outspoken and highly visible members” of the Sisters, according to her biography.

She fought Facebook over its policy requiring people to use their government-recognized names on accounts, launching the #MyNameIs hashtag campaign in favor of people’s right to self-identify on the social media platform. She has also served as an educator, activist and fundraiser in the fight against HIV and AIDS, raising more than $1 million for the LGBTQ global community, according to her bio.

In response to Jones’ letter, Atkins issued a statement calling it “a misguided distraction on the first day of Pride Month.”

“As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I respect my Republican colleagues, but I’m extremely disappointed in them for leaning in to polarization. I stand with the members of the LGBTQ Caucus – Sister Roma and all of this year’s honorees are deserving of being celebrated for their contributions to the LGBTQ+ community and California,” Atkins said.

The pro tem also wrote her own letter to the Senate Republican Caucus, saying she would not rescind Sister Roma’s invitation.

Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, who invited Sister Roma to be honored, told The Bee that he strongly disagrees with Jones’ letter.

“Sister Roma is one of the most respected and accomplished community leaders in San Francisco,” Wiener said, adding that the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence raise hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for people in need in the community and that the order is “doing many of the things that the Catholic Church preaches about.”

Wiener said his Republican colleagues should focus on “the actual hate that’s happening in this country,” much of which is directed at drag performers.

“We’re going to have a great time on Monday and we’re going to celebrate our community,” Wiener added.