The U.S. Department of Justice has launched an investigation into Major League Baseball after four San Francisco Giants players allegedly wrote Bible verses on their hats during the team’s Pride Night.
On June 12, three Giants pitchers, Landen Loop, JT Brubaker, and Ryan Walker, broke MLB’s policy by altering their uniforms to include Bible verses on their Pride night caps that featured the rainbow Giants logo. And the other pitcher, Sam Hentges, wasn’t even wearing a Pride Knight hat. The players received warnings from MLB for violating uniform regulations.
In a letter to Commissioner Rob Manfred, the Justice Department said it would refer Major League Baseball to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
“The three players have expressed opposition to MLB’s Pride-leaning orthodoxy,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said in the letter. “Civil rights law prohibits MLB and its franchises from unduly burdening the rights of players who have religious objections to the league’s ability to serve as a vehicle for pro-pride messages.
“Federal law is clear: Employers must modify uniform requirements to reasonably accommodate the religious practices of their employees,” Dillon added in the letter. “The Trump Administration is committed to combating religious discrimination.”
On June 16, Vice President J.C. Vance spoke out publicly on social media, responding to a Sports Illustrated social media post saying, “Trump won. We don’t have to do this anymore.”
The Giants said after the incident that they were “proud to support Pride Knights and the LGBTQ community,” but added that while they respect the ability of individuals to make “personal choices regarding the activation of their team,” the players had caused “pain and anger to many in the LGBTQ community.”
