Religious groups protest drag nuns Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence at LA Dodgers Pride event
Christian groups gathered to protest against the Dodgers’ inclusion of the Sisters of Indulgence in their Pride Night event. (Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Thousands of protesters from various religions gathered to demonstrate against the LA Dodgers hosting the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence at its Pride event.
On Friday (16 June), the Californian baseball team hosted its 10th annual Pride Night at Dodger Stadium.
During the event, the LA chapter of drag act the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence were joined on the field by former Dodgers outfielder Billy Bean, one of the only major league players to come out publicly.
The Sisters were given a Community Hero Award during a pregame ceremony, for their work supporting the local LGBTQ+ community.
The team has faced much backlash, particularly from right-wing religious groups, for including the drag group in the line up for its event.
The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are a drag troupe which dates back to 1979 and uses a mix of religious imagery and camp to raise awareness of social issues.
Christian figures such as Florida Republican Marco Rubio, hit out at the LA Dodgers for putting the drag act on the bill, saying it was offensive to Christians like himself
The negative response saw the LA Dodgers uninvite the act from the event, only to then face criticism from the LGBTQ+ community for false allyship in the wake of conservative ire, which saw the team re-invite the performers and issue an apology.
Two hours before the start of the Dodgers game against the San Francisco Giants, protesters began to gather outside the stadium.
The demonstrators held signs which read “stop anti-Catholic hate”, “Dodgers sold their soul” and “God will not be mocked”.
The rally attracted a large police presence from the Los Angeles Police Department, but no violence was reported to have broken out during the demonstration.
Video and images from inside the stadium were shared on social media and went viral, suggesting the venue was nearly empty during the Pride Night event.
However, fact-checkers quickly clarified the images were taken before the game and it was, in fact, well-attended with 49,074 turning out to watch inside the stadium.
One video in particular shows the Sisters accepting their award in front of a near empty stadium, for which the LA Dodgers explained to the Los Angeles Times that this pregame ceremony was held earlier than usual due to safety concerns.
“The stands were more empty than filled, but the mood was warm and happy,” drag act member Sister Unity told the publication.
“People were happy, people were friendly, the sun was shining, the grass was green, and now we have baseball and hot dogs, its LA at its best.”
Sister Unity added: “There are a couple of thousand people protesting, there are over a million people in my community in LA County.
“Whatever happens to me, I have to be there for them. This moment was given to us, it was a moral imperative for me to rise to that occasion on behalf of the people who believe in us.”
Controversial Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, who represents Georgia, wrote on Twitter: “Seeing thousands of Christians and Catholics praise the holy name of God as they protested against the Dodger’s disgusting embrace and praise of transgender ‘nuns’ was one of the best things I’ve seen happen this year.
“We have had enough.”
Presidential candidate Ron DeSantis, who has made it his personal mission to rally against all things ‘woke’ weighed in on the topic.
“Good on the thousands who showed up at Dodger Stadium to protest this anti-Catholic hate group,” he said, before going to share misinformation about the game’s attendance.
“The virtually empty stadium for the game itself was a powerful image – Americans are fed up with the nonsense and are fighting back.”
In a press release about the Pride Night, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said: “For me, it just always goes back to loving everyone and as the manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers, a baseball team, I welcome, we welcome anyone that comes through these gates to support our ballclub.”
During the Pride Night game, players and staffers wore hats which featured a rainbow-coloured Dodgers logo.
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