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The Los Angeles Dodgers Pride hat.Meg Oliphant/Getty Images
The LA Dodgers LGBTQ Pride Night became controversial when an activist group that offended the religious right was invited.
Conservatives hailed a video of an almost empty stadium as a victory and claimed they organized a successful boycott.
In reality, the match had an above-average turnout as religious groups protested outside.
Conservatives seem elated that they may have just scored yet another culture war victory — this time via Major League Baseball’s Los Angeles Dodgers.
But their claim that they successfully boycotted a Dodgers game because of its LGBTQ Pride participation and guests — notably repeated by presidential candidate Ron DeSantis — appears to be false.
Leading up to the team’s 10th annual LGBTQ+ Pride Night, the Dodgers released the Sisters of eternal indulgencea non-profit “order of queer and trans nuns,” which some religious conservatives considered offensive to Christianity and Catholicism.
“We asked the Sisters of Perpetual Indulggence to take their place on the field at our 10th annual LGBTQ+ Pride Night on June 16,” the team said in the re-invitation statement shared on Twitter. “We are pleased to share that they have agreed to express the gratitude of our collective communities for the lifesaving work they have done tirelessly for decades.”
As the satirical group received a community activism award at Dodgers stadium on Friday, religious groups protested outside the stadium and briefly closed the main entrance, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis recently launched his 2024 presidential bid, tweeted in support of the protesters and claimed the stadium was “virtually empty.” Some conservatives distributed photos and videoswhich were reportedly taken for the opening field, of an almost empty stadium.
“The virtually empty stadium before the game itself was a powerful image,” DeSantis said in his tweet. “Americans are tired of the nonsense and are fighting back.”
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In reality, Friday’s game surpassed the team’s average attendance of 47,800 people, according to Forbes.
“Our paid Friday night attendance was 49,074,” Joe Jarec, senior director of public relations for the Dodgers, told Insider in a comment.
Jareck refused to answer Insider’s other questions about the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and the protesters.
The Sisters of Perpetual Indulggence — which organizes events for queer youth and adults and awards grants to small community organizations that target marginalized people — shared a statement saying the ordeal of the invite had a “silver lining.”
“Our group has been strengthened, protected and elevated to a position where we can now offer our message of hope and joy to many more people than before. It is with great love and respect that we thank every person and every organization that has spoken for us,” said the group in one rack on their website.
Read the original article Business Insider
