The thing about caving in to fascist bigots is that no matter how loud and angry the bigots are, they are outnumbered by the other side (the side of good) in this country. The LA Dodgers got a reminder of this recently when they caved to Florida’s U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of all people and disinvited The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence from an upcoming Pride event. OK, as someone who lived down the street from Dodgers stadium for years, this was a personal bee in my bonnet because Rubio doesn’t even go here, OK!? That jerk was born in Miami, Florida, he doesn’t even know what backstreets to take when Sunset is crowded (Hoover, FYI) so he can just sit there, shut up, and think about the Marlins (who have won a World Series Title far fewer times than the Dodgers have, OK?!)
With that in mind, it is with great pleasure that I tell you that while Rubio had an initial victory in getting the queer charity organization disinvited, his gambit to spread his bigotry to the West Coast has failed. The Dodgers apologized, the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have been reinvited back to the Pride event, and they have accepted.
From the above Tweet:
“After much thoughtful feedback from our diverse communities, honest conversations within the Los Angeles Dodgers organization and generous discussions with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, 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”
As a reminder, The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence have been around for more than 40 years, and have served California communities in a far more meaningful way than Marco Rubio ever has, or will, for that matter. The Sisters describe themselves as “a leading-edge Order of queer and trans nuns. We believe all people have a right to express their unique joy and beauty.” On their website, they have links to many resources for members of the LGBTQIA+ to seek comfort, find community, and get community resources. Marco Rubio, on the other hand, said he wouldn’t vote for a bill codifying gay marriage, calling it a “fake problem” and also calling the bill a “stupid waste of time”—yet he had all the time in the world to harass the Dodgers to disinvite The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. Does this make sense to anyone!?
It’s a shame Rubio and the bigots got their way in the first place, and walking back the hate is the least the Dodgers can do. Although what else can you expect from a senator who has a 0 ranking from the Human Rights Campaign? Maybe Rubio should spend a little less time worrying about what’s happening in California and maybe a little more time doing literally anything else.
(featured image: Daniel Knighton/Getty Images)
