Los Angeles Dodgers reinvite drag group to Pride Night after fevered backlash

Ariana Baio
·2 min read

The Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team has issued an apology and re-invited the satirical drag group the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence to their annual Pride Night after receiving backlash for uninviting the nonprofit organisation.

“The Los Angeles Dodgers would like to offer our sincerest apologies to the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, members of the LGBTQ+ community and their friends and families,” the Dodgers said in a statement posted to Twitter.

Earlier this week, the LA Dodgers announced they were uninviting the drag group from their Pride Night after several conservative Catholic groups expressed opposition.

Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) was among those criticising the LA Dodgers for allowing the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence to participate in Pride Night and wrote a letter to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred about the sister’s “lew imitation” of nuns.

The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence is a nonprofit organisation that raises money for LGBT+-related causes using drag and religious imagery to comedically “expose the forces of bigotry, complacency and guilt that chain the human spirit”.

The group has been active since 1979.

After the LA Dodgers rescinded their invitation, LA Pride, the organisation that has hosted Pride Night at Dodger Stadium over the years, backed out of this year’s Pride Night.

As a result, the LA Dodgers said they re-evaluated their decision to uninvite the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence with consideration to “thoughtful feedback” and “honest conversations”.

“We have asked the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence to take their place on the field at our 10th annual LGBTQ+ Pride Night on June 16th. We are pleased to share that they have agreed to receive the gratitude of our collective communities for the lifesaving work that they have done tirelessly for decades,” they added.

“In the weeks ahead, we will continue to work with our LGBTQ+ partners to better educate ourselves, find ways to strengthen the ties that bind and use our platform to support all of our fans who make up the diversity of the Dodgers family,” the LA Dodgers said in their statement.

The Independent has reached out to the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence for comment.

Mr Rubio criticised the LA Dodgers’ decision to re-invite the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence claiming they were “bullied into apologizing” and “re-inviting” the group.