The Los Angeles Dodgers faced widespread criticism for its decision to honor a controversial group of drag performers at an LGBT “pride” event at the team’s stadium on Friday.
DODGER STADIUM-The “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence” are recognized for Pride night to a mostly empty audience.
Two Dodgers fan nearby begin loudly booing after they’re announced: pic.twitter.com/OO6NT5RIc8
— Savanah Hernandez (@sav_says_) June 17, 2023
After initially reacting to backlash from the Catholic community by canceling the appearance by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, counterprotests by LGBT activists caused the franchise to reconsider.
The group of performers is known for mocking and ridiculing the Catholic faith during shows and various religious leaders and entities spoke out forcefully against the Dodgers’ decision to present the troupe with a “community hero award.”
Although the franchise attempted to cool tensions by announcing a “Christian Faith Night” to be held at a later date, Catholic groups continued to express their outrage. Perhaps the most notable response came from CatholicVote, a non-profit organization headquartered in Wisconsin that spent more than $1 million on ads detailing how the Dodgers “lost their way.”
The 60-second ad begins with a brief history of the team’s “trailblazer” status, including the bold decision to allow Jackie Robinson to break the race barrier in major league baseball.
“Playing Jackie wasn’t popular,” the narrator asserted. “Hate and disrespect were popular … but the Dodgers were right. But today, the Dodgers are putting it all at risk.”
CatholicVote also penned an op-ed published in The Federalist that highlighted the perceived disrespect that the team has shown its Catholic fans as well as current and former members.
“How could a venerated American institution like the Dodgers — who play for 4 million Catholics in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles alone and count devout Catholics such as Vin Scully, Tommy Lasorda, and Gil Hodges among their beloved legends — celebrate such radically anti-Catholic bigots?” the organization asked. “Why would Dodgers owner Todd Boehly decide to taint baseball’s beloved legacy of patriotism, faith, and family with a group that exists to defile religious values?”
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) also weighed in on the controversy with an appearance in the CatholicVote ad as well as in an op-ed he co-authored with the group’s president, Brian Burch.
“Tonight, the Dodgers aren’t celebrating pride; they are promoting bigotry,” the senator declared in the video. “The so-called Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are not community heroes. They are nothing more than an anti-Catholic hate group.”
