The Giants’ Pride Night controversy has sparked an investigation by President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice.
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In a letter addressed to MLB commissioner Rob Manfred released Thursday afternoon, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon argued that the league’s warning to players not to write on their hats violated the players’ religious freedom under the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Dhillon, a former California Republican Party boardmember, cited Title VII of the act, which prohibits employers from discriminating on the basis of “race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.” She also pointed to a U.S. Code which requires employers to reasonably accommodate to an employee’s … religious observance or practice without undue hardship on the conduct of the employer’s business.”
Last Friday night, Giants pitchers Landen Roupp, JT Brubaker and Ryan Walker each wrote Bible verses on the team’s Pride Night caps, which featured all the colors of the Pride Progress flag on the “SF” logo. Sam Hentges wore the team’s standard black cap with an orange logo.
Monday, Major League Baseball issued a statement that “writing on the cap violates our rules, and consistent with normal practice, we have warned the players about future violations.”
The league followed up a day later, emphasizing that the Giants players weren’t warned because of what they wrote, but because of the league’s uniform regulations, which “provides in part that, ‘(a) player may not write, attach, affix, embroider or otherwise display nicknames or messages on apparel or playing equipment …’”
In the week since Pride Night, the actions of the players and the league’s response have sparked widespread debate and appear to be splitting the fan base.
The team has come under fire for remaining silent after issuing an apology Friday night. San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, among others, has condemned the players’ actions. Longtime Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow became embroiled in a national controversy this week when he took to the airwaves on Wednesday morning and spoke at length about the issue, expressing his support for the LGBTQ+ community.
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Others have supported the players, who all have insisted there was “no hate” behind their actions. Vice President JD Vance earlier in the week wrote, “Trump won, we don’t have to do this anymore.”
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., earlier this week wrote his own letter to Manfred calling the league’s response a “pattern of discrimination” against Christian players.
A minor-league team in Pennsylvania canceled and forfeited a game this week after its players refused to wear Pride Night jerseys featuring rainbow sleeves.
The Giants have a history of celebrating Pride dating back to 1994, when they became the first professional sports team to host an HIV/AIDS awareness game. In 2021, the Giants became the first MLB team to incorporate Pride colors into their on-field apparel for their Pride game.
“The Trump Administration is committed to combatting religious discrimination. The Department of Justice will use all available means to hold employers accountable for violating the religious rights of their employees,” Dhillon wrote before noting she had referred the issue to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate.
This is not the first time President Donald Trump’s administration has taken aim at an institution over an issue involving LGBTQ+ rights in the Bay Area. Last year, the Department of Education opened an investigation into San Jose State allowing trans athlete Blaire Fleming to play on the Spartans volleyball team. Fleming was eligible under NCAA rules at the time, the school said, but the administration ruled in January that San Jose State had violated Title IX, and in March the school sued the department to block it from cutting funding.
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