It’s especially appropriate to ponder this phenomenon today, because the manufactured “Black Independence Day” holiday with the obnoxiously precious name “Juneteenth” is one of the most glaring examples.
However, the focus of this post is “Pride Month,” when everyone is supposed to say “Yay!” about what special people do with their hoo-haas as long it doesn’t square with conventional mores or biology. We’ve already discussed some of the more annoying examples of this pandering, as in this post, and certain organizations’ unethical (but not illegal) efforts to punish individualists who object to being forced to celebrate something their faith, good tatste or brain cells tell them shouldn’t be celebrated. To choose an analogous example, baseball players shouldn’t have to promote masturbation on “Masturbation Day” because masturbation enthusiasts banded together and bullied the teams into the promotion
Two ethics tales on this topic:
1. A flag comes down.
It is an ethics tell that some of the groveling organizations find themselves under attack when they finally decide not to grovel.
For the first time in the history of Webster, New York, on June 1 the Rainbow flag at went up the flagpole at the Town Hall and Webster issued a “Pride Month” proclamation. Republicans on the town board, however, voted to adopt a policy that limits flags flown on town property to Old Glory and New York state flags. The “Pride” flag came down after just four days, and LGTBQ bullies and their supporters freaked out. Protesters screamed at the flag removal. One woman shouted that the flag coming down would get children killed.
This is the predictable result when a special benefit adopted for a specific purpose at a specific time in a specific context no longer is appropriate, and therefore is ended. The end of a positive for the affected group is immediately and deliberately treated as a rejection, so the special status must remain in perpetuity. The LGTBQ community is no longer closeted nor widely discriminated against, nor treated as second class citizens. If that community has to have its “flag” flown over government property, what group doesn’t have a claim that their tribe warrants equal status? Notes Victory Girls,
“The American flag does not belong to one political party, one religion, one race, or one sexual orientation. It represents every citizen equally. Gay Americans are not excluded from that symbol. They are included within it, just as every other American is. That is why many people are perfectly comfortable with government buildings displaying the American flag and little else. The flag already represents the entire community. It does not become more inclusive simply because someone hangs extra flags next to it. Nothing about Webster’s decision prevents anyone from advocating for LGBT causes. People remain free to organize events, hold rallies, raise money, celebrate pride month, wear rainbow clothing, and express their views publicly. None of those activities depend upon a town hall flagpole. That is what makes some of the reaction so curious. A movement that enjoys widespread corporate support, extensive media coverage, political backing, and cultural prominence should not be endangered by the absence of a single government-displayed symbol. At some point, the demand stops looking like a request for acceptance and starts looking like a demand for official endorsement.”
It starts looking like that because that is exactly what it is. Days later, the American flag at Town Hall was discovered at the bottom of the flagpole, and a Rainbow flag was flying far above it. U.S. Flag Code dictates that no other flag should be flown above the American flag when they are displayed together. The vandalism was addressed, and currently the American flag is the only flag flying at Webster Town Hall, with padlocks added to the flagpole.
The result of groveling to various tribes, splinters and interest groups is that their members come to regard division as more important than union, and eventually other sectors demand equal submission.
2. A woke organization gets its priorities wrong.
Ethics Alarms 
Huntington Beach CA voted similarly – that only the American, California, and Huntington Beach flags be flown
On the jerseys, I have mixed feelings.
On making anyone wear them… I’m right there with all of you: They’re gaudy, they’re wasteful, they’re pandering to a demographic that generally doesn’t care about the sport, and isn’t going to regardless of how much they pander, and like the activists said: It’s entirely stupid and self-defeating for a movement predicated on “just let us do us, it doesn’t really effect you” to be involved in situations where people are being forced to be effected.
That said… I think the players probably should have shut up, worn the jersey, and played the game. The gays didn’t force the club to make those jerseys or decide to pander, the club did that on their own, just like they do damn near every other week for one cause or another, pink jerseys for ladies, camo jerseys for veterans… There’s different jerseys for throwback nights, commemorative events, Friday home games. Your mileage varies by sport and club, but these are well known and genuine work requirements. This is the other side of the coin from when players were kneeling for BLM protests: As opposed to protesting by doing something they weren’t supposed to be doing, they’re protesting by not doing something that they are. Regardless of our personal support for the thing being pandered to (or not), we should probably be consistent.
Because I was curious, I Googled the York Revolution’s alternate uniforms, and I’m just saying….
“The Big Dills” Alternate Identity: For specific theme nights (like their annual “Pickle Party”), the entire team shifts away from the Revolution brand to wear specialized, green-themed “Big Dills” jerseys.
Ritmo de York Uniforms: Worn during multi-game series celebrating Latin Heritage Month and regional cultural connections. These jerseys feature distinct color patterns and are auctioned off to fans post-game.
First Responders & Military Uniforms: Custom jerseys worn on Salute to Service nights, often featuring camouflage or specialized service patches, which are auctioned to support local veterans’ organizations.
Pop Culture & Hero Nights: The team frequently collaborates with major brands for events like “Marvel Night,” where players take the field in custom superhero-inspired jerseys (such as Iron Man themes).
Bark in The Park: When playing Wednesday nights at home, the team plays as the Rescues, and the team completely swaps their standard home whites for a custom jersey featuring a paw print pattern with illustrations of a dog and a cat.
Jersey Potpourri: The club hosts roughly 4 to 6 weekend charity nights per year where players wear custom, themed uniforms—such as superhero themes, “Under the Sea” styles, or patriotic designs, designed for charity auctions.
Christmas in July / Holiday Jerseys: Festive, holiday-inspired variations of their home script jerseys.
Google is telling me that the York wear alternate jerseys at about 20% of all home games.
Maybe you missed it, but I maintain the kneeling fad was materially different. Players standing for the Anthem has been upheld as a known contractual duty. It is traditional, and and it is the status quo that the spectators expect. Kneeling hijacked a portion of the game experience for a political statement that was neither expected or welcome. The Pride pandering is literally the opposite, and players insisting on wearing what they normally wear is hardly obtrusive or unexpected. “I refuse to do what every pro player has done before every came for a century “is not the same as “I refuse to do what the team decided is a political statement it wants to make.”
Oh come on, that’s just sad rationalizing… There is no universe where wearing your team’s jersey is not a “known contractual duty”. Does anyone think it’s optional?
I’m also going to go one step further and point out that playing the anthem is a form of pandering, and that nothing about the contest requires an anthem be played… You just like it.
Your team’s Jerseys are not assumed to be “walking billboards for interest group activism.”
If a part of a game’s ritual is established and universally applied, then it is officially part of the game experience, and it is. Not a rationalization at all….and courts have held that while players are not obligated to be on the field during the anthem, they are obligated to stand if they are. It’s a known condition of employment. Nothing in a player’s contract obligates her or him to give public support for a cause adopted by the team.
I would refuse to wear a mandated Pride jersey even though I supported the celebration. I object to the forced speech, even though I may agree with it.
Your team’s Jerseys are not assumed to be “walking billboards for interest group activism.”
Not only is that irrelevant, it doesn’t have the benefit of being true. One fifth of the time, players are being handed a jersey other than what they normally wear, explicitly to pander to one segment of the audience or another. They are literally walking billboards for interest group activism, and anyone who pretends not to know this is either unfamiliar or being deliberately obtuse. What? You think the dog or pickle uniforms give them a competitive edge?
If a part of a game’s ritual is established and universally applied, then it is officially part of the game experience, and it is.
This seems like something you just made up to reinforce your point. How does something become part of the Game’s ritual? How long does it need to be a ritual to gain protection? And what level of protection does it gain? Because there’s a lot of things that have changed about a lot of sports.
and courts have held that while players are not obligated to be on the field during the anthem, they are obligated to stand if they are.
I have the impression that there’s more to those rulings than you’re letting on. The NFL rulebook doesn’t explicitly require standing, and without a written rule, I would be legitimately amazed that the courts could force specific performance against someone’s first amendment rights. This seems like something that might be team-contract specific.
But then again… So is wearing a jersey.
Nothing in a player’s contract obligates her or him to give public support for a cause adopted by the team.
I would be willing to bet untold amounts of money that there is language in at least some contracts that obligates exactly that.
Is there still any justification in the USA, more than ten years after gay marriage was legalized, to have a Gay Pride month? I guess if you are gay or liberal you consider Gay Pride celebrations all fine and dandy; I prefer not have matters pertaining to sexuality rubbed in my face for a full month. Consider for a moment that a social conservative red state replaces Gay Pride month with a Traditional Family Pride month, and we are required the tradcon lifestyle with lots of homeschooled children. Not that I am in favor of that; and it would offend a lot of people. Celebrate your sexual and family choices at home, or at your wedding. I do not want to compelled to celebrate or affirm other peoples life choices in these matters as they are private matters.
Get rid of all ‘special’ days and months. Every single one of them. They force people to observe or celebrate an issue or agenda that may be antithetical to their belief system. We have plenty of laws that protect rights, and a variety of affirmative action programs that cater to the needs of perceived oppressed groups. The best of intentions has created this mess, but there are so many dedicated days and months they have lost their meaning. So eliminate them all.
Well, let’s keep national doughnut day.
Then there are DIY national days:
https://www.nationaldayarchives.com/register-national-day/
All MLB teams have official ‘City Connect’ uniforms which they regularly wear at selected home games. I saw the Rangers’ 2026 City Connect uniforms last night — they say ‘Tejas’ across the front, but otherwise look fairly normal (previous years City Connects always seemed a bit weird to me). And actually I could argue that ‘Tejas’ captures an important aspect of the MLB player base the last few decades.
It only took me a year or two to figure out that these jerseys were a sponsored thing, and not until I googled it today did I tumble to the fact that they are sponsored by Nike. So every week or two, players are in effect billboards for Nike — broadcasters and ticket promotions are required to highlight that it’s City Connect uniform night.
I either don’t mind much, or am simply used to the constant din of advertisements that comprise a baseball broadcast. I mean, I think the broadcasters have their baseball statistics book at one hand, and a stack of required sponsor’s ‘reads’ at the other. It is all part of the system that lets owners pay tens of millions a year to their superstar players.