Dodgers Slammed For Ditching Drag Charity At Behest Of Bigots
The annual Pride celebration at Dodgers Stadium has swerved towards major controversy after the Los Angeles team bowed to pressure from conservatives and disinvited a well-known charity organization.
The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have been around for decades, utilizing drag and street performance to raise awareness for LGBTQ+ issues and funds for their communities. They are so respected and beloved in their work that they were set to receive a Community Hero Award at Dodgers’ Pride Night this June — but found themselves disinvited from the event altogether instead.
The pivot took place after conservatives, largely led by Florida’s Marco Rubio, threw a temper tantrum claiming the group “intentionally mocks and degrades Christians” and denouncing the event as non-inclusive.
For some baffling reason, the Dodgers decided to listen to the voices of people who actively work to silence and dismiss the LGBTQ+ community — and who don’t even live in Los Angeles — about an event intended to do the opposite of that, and announced that the Sisters would no longer be welcome at Pride Night.
The decision was made “in the spirit of unity,” they claimed, and cited the “strong feelings of people who have been offended by the sisters’ inclusion in our evening.”
\u201chttps://t.co/k4v1valfRY\u201d
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Los Angeles Dodgers) 1684349682
“https://t.co/k4v1valfRY”
If the Dodgers thought the backlash from bigots was bad, the anger from the LGBTQ+ community they disregarded immediately proved worse.
Angelenos who were otherwise excited to attend Dodgers Pride Night called the organization out, pointing out that this bowing to a hateful agenda masked with fake concern is actually the opposite of inclusivity and unity.
\u201cPride started as a protest, So this is hilariously tone deaf. How are you gonna celebrate pride by contributing to the exact thing that started it all? Cancel it.\u201d
— mac (@mac) 1684427880
“Pride started as a protest, So this is hilariously tone deaf. How are you gonna celebrate pride by contributing to the exact thing that started it all? Cancel it.”
\u201cthe reason there even is a precedented pride night for this venue is bc they have felt obligated to it, this is highlighted by how quick they are to turn their backs on important cornerstones in the queer community & industry \u2014 our community is disposable to them, it\u2019s all abt $\u201d
— BIBLEGIRL (@BIBLEGIRL) 1684432077
“the reason there even is a precedented pride night for this venue is bc they have felt obligated to it, this is highlighted by how quick they are to turn their backs on important cornerstones in the queer community & industry — our community is disposable to them, it’s all abt $”
\u201c@Dodgers I've been a fan since 81, and I've sat through a whole lot of stuff you guys have promoted that was offensive to ME, but I knew was important to others. I'm very disappointed in this organization today. Bauer signing was Strike 1 for new ownership, this is Strike 2. Shame on you.\u201d
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Los Angeles Dodgers) 1684349682
“@Dodgers I've been a fan since 81, and I've sat through a whole lot of stuff you guys have promoted that was offensive to ME, but I knew was important to others. I'm very disappointed in this organization today. Bauer signing was Strike 1 for new ownership, this is Strike 2. Shame on you.”
\u201cThe Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have been in California since 1979 (and there and elsewhere since). They raised funds to help people with HIV/AIDS and supported public health education. They have done more good than most of us will do. This is embarrassing for the Dodgers.\u201d
— Chris Geidner (@Chris Geidner) 1684387456
“The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have been in California since 1979 (and there and elsewhere since). They raised funds to help people with HIV/AIDS and supported public health education. They have done more good than most of us will do. This is embarrassing for the Dodgers.”
\u201cThe Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence dress like fabulous, otherworldly nuns in part to call attention to the religious trauma queer people face, & here the Dodgers are cutting them out of Pride Night in the name of placating Marco Rubio & other Catholic bigots\n\nThis sucks @Dodgers\u201d
— People's City Council - Los Angeles (@People's City Council - Los Angeles) 1684375352
“The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence dress like fabulous, otherworldly nuns in part to call attention to the religious trauma queer people face, & here the Dodgers are cutting them out of Pride Night in the name of placating Marco Rubio & other Catholic bigots This sucks @Dodgers”
And a major blow came a day later in the form of LA Pride denouncing the decision and withdrawing their usual partnership with the Dodgers for the event.
“Pride is a fight for equality and inclusion for the entire LGBTQ+ community and we’re not going to stop now,” they said in a heavily praised statement.
\u201c\ud83d\udc9c\u201d
— LA Pride (@LA Pride) 1684456196
“💜”
The chain of events set off here could end in a poorly attended or outright canceled Dodgers Pride Night, which would ultimately give the bigots what they want. But at the same time, the local LGBTQ+ community was backed into a corner by the Dodgers’ initial capitulation to uninvested antagonistic parties — accept the exclusion of a valued group or stand up for what’s right.
Clearly, many have chosen the latter.
The Sisters have also expressed their frustration with the situation at hand, blaming “hateful and misleading information from people outside [the Dodgers’] community, who target not only the LGBTQ++ community but also women’s autonomy over their bodies, people and communities of color, and other faiths and nationalities.”
“The Sisters are not anti-Catholic, but an organization based on love, acceptance, and celebrating human diversity,” their statement reads. “Do not let people who hate us all decide that some parts of our community are more tolerable than others, that some shall be seated at the table while others are locked out.”
\u201cThe San Francisco Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence Condemn the Los Angeles Dodgers\u2019 Decision to Withdraw a Promised Honor to the Sisters\u201d
— The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence (@The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence) 1684440581
“The San Francisco Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence Condemn the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Decision to Withdraw a Promised Honor to the Sisters”
