Once again, the Texas Rangers opted not to celebrate Pride last month with a dedicated day or night on its 2024 promotion schedule. And once again, the American League West team is the only Major League operation to do so. 

This repeated omission by the reigning World Series champs has sparked what one conservative news site calls a “ridiculous backlash.” As the Washington Examiner’s Kimberly Ross wrote this week:

“There is no getting away from these ubiquitous celebrations. Instead of ‘to each his own,’ major league teams are nearly required to give in and perform in an effort to placate the loudest crowds. It’s not good enough to include everyone at all times. You must kowtow or else. This kind of bullying is unacceptable, and it’s worth pushing back against whether you’re a regular citizen or the 2023 World Series champion Texas Rangers.”

But the only evidence of the “backlash” was a balanced report by Schuyler Dixon of the Associated Press that appeared on the website of KSAT-TV in San Antonio, detailing the frustrations of local LGBTQ advocates and fans. His report was posted by the AP under the headline: “Why are the Texas Rangers the only MLB team without a Pride Night?” The virulently anti-trans British tabloid, the Daily Mail rehashed that same AP piece but added that LGBTQ groups were “FURIOUS” without substantiating that claim with a single quote. 

At most, DeeJay Johannessen, chief executive of the HELP Center, an LGBTQ organization based in Tarrant County, where the Rangers play, told the AP he felt “kind of embarrassed.” The Daily Mail headline writer was apparently “kind of” clickbaiting. 

“It’s kind of an embarrassment to the city of Arlington that their team is the only one that doesn’t have a Pride night,” Johannessen said. Local advocate Rafael McDonnell said, “It pains me that this remains an issue [after] all these years.”

How painful? McDonnell told the AP he considered not attending the championship parade with his boyfriend when the Rangers celebrated their first World Series championship last fall. Ultimately, he decided to go. So much for “FURIOUS.” 

McDonnell is the communications and advocacy manager for the Resource Center, which is an organization that grew out of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s. He added that his group has worked with the Rangers, at their invitation, to help them develop a policy of inclusion, starting about five years ago.

The team has sent employees to volunteer for programs supporting its efforts in advocating for marriage equality and transgender rights.

Although McDonnell said members of the Rangers staff keep in contact with him, he told the AP he can’t recall any conversations with the team since its five-game victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in last year’s World Series. 

“For a long time, I’ve thought that it might be somebody very high up in the organization who is opposed to this for some reason that is not clearly articulated,” McDonnell said. “To say that the Rangers aren’t doing anything for the community, well, they have. But the hill that they are choosing to stake themselves out on is no Pride night.”

The Rangers did celebrate Mexican heritage during a game last month, and also host nights throughout the season dedicated to other groups as well as the Boy Scouts, the Girl Scouts, first responders, teachers, and the military. The team also recognizes universities from around the Dallas-Fort Worth area and other parts of the Lone Star State. But not Pride. 

Why? The Rangers issued a statement, very similar to one from 2023. It lists various organizations the team has sponsored and steps it has taken internally to “create a welcoming, inclusive, and supportive environment for fans and employees.”

“Our longstanding commitment remains the same: To make everyone feel welcome and included in Rangers baseball — in our ballpark, at every game, and in all we do — for both our fans and our employees,” the team said. “We deliver on that promise across our many programs to have a positive impact across our entire community.”

“I think it’s a private organization,” said Rangers fan Will Davis. “And if they don’t want to have it, I don’t think they should be forced to have it.” Davis is from Marble Falls, about 200 miles southwest of the stadium in Central Texas and attended a recent game with his son’s youth baseball team.

“I think if it were something where MLB said, ‘We’re not participating in this,’ but the MLB does participate in it. And the Rangers have chosen not to,” said Rangers fan Misty Lockhart, who lives near told the ballpark. Lockhart told the AP she attends almost three dozen games every season. “I think that’s where I take the bigger issue, is they have actively chosen not to participate in it.”

While Lockhart says she doesn’t see Pride night as a political issue, she suggested there would be more pressure on the Rangers if their stadium was downtown, in the heart of Dallas County, where the majority of elected officials are Democrats. Tarrant County, home to Arlington, Fort Worth and Global Life Stadium, is generally more conservative, just like the governor, lieutenant governor, legislature, and fans like Will Davis. 

“In something like this, this is a way for people to go as a state,” Davis told the AP. “We don’t want the political stuff shoved down our throats one way or the other, left or right. We’re coming out here to have a good time with friends or family and let it be.”

Unfortunately, some Rangers fans decided they could not “let it be” the one time the team welcomed local LGBTQ groups to a game as part of a fundraising event, as it does for other groups. This was in September 2003, two years after the Chicago Cubs hosted what is considered the first-ever Pride game. At that time, Rangers fans raged about the invitation on a website, and showed up to protest outside the stadium before that game. 

The Rangers never extended that invitation again. 

Olympian Campbell Harrison has already conquered an eating disorder, anxiety, depression, and disappointment for skipping the Tokyo Summer Games so he could support his older sister in her battle with cancer. 

So, he’s saying “no wucka’s” (meaning, “no problem” in Aussie lingo) to the bigots, trolls, mongrels, and “drongos” (meaning, “dicks” and “fools,” respectively) who plastered their disapproval in the comments of an Instagram post celebrating him as the first LGBTQ sport climber in Olympic history. 

The post wasn’t even his; the official Olympics Instagram account shared pictures from his qualifying climb from November 2023, and tagged Harrison earlier this week. 

“Celebration kiss for the ages 😘🌈” reads the caption. “After not making it to Tokyo 2020, Australian sport climber Campbell Harrison did not give up and four years later secured a quota spot for the Olympic Games #Paris2024. It was an emotional victory celebrated together with his partner, Justin.”

Harrison, having seen the negative comments multiply, took them in stride with a snappy response that included a tag to his boyfriend, Justin Maire, whose account is private.  

“All these people mad cause we’re hotter than they are 😘,” Harrison wrote. 

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A post shared by The Olympic Games (@olympics)

Harrison’s mother, Yvette, shared her support: “I could not be more proud of you my beautiful son. You and Justin are such a beautiful couple and we love you both very much. 🏳️‍🌈🙌❤️”

There were plenty of other supportive comments, and haters were called out, too: “I love all the people following the @Olympics page due to the Olympic spirit (among other values), who don’t see the irony of bashing an Olympic athlete because of who they love,” wrote out travel writer and LGBTQ rights advocate Mikah Meyer.

The person managing the official Olympics Instagram account was asked to do a better job curating the comments, which were largely vitriolic and cruel. The account posted this plea: “Let’s keep our community positive ❤️ Please ensure your comments are respectful and avoid any language that could be offensive, or harmful to others. We reserve the right to remove comments that do not adhere to this guideline.” 

Gay Olympic champion diver Matthew Mitcham commented: “15 years ago I kissed my partner on camera when I won in Beijing 2008. This one post by @olympics has received more hate than I did in my whole career.” 

Today is Harrison’s 28^th birthday. He, his boyfriend and his mother recently spoke with Climbing’s Holly Yu Tung Chen. She wrote: 

“Campbell arrived in the world on June 28, 1997, screaming inconsolably. Unlike his three other siblings, who were all ‘peaches and cream,’ said Yvette, baby Campbell was “squishy and cuddly, yes — but he had a lot to say from the word go.”

“Campbell started climbing at age eight when Russell took the children to the Victorian Climbing Centre and noticed Campbell’s immediate vigor. It’s the age-old climber tale: Campbell almost immediately lost interest in the other sports he dabbled in, including swimming, soccer, and track and field. All he wanted to do was climb.”

Harrison told Climbing although he never actually “came out” as gay, he never hid his sexuality, and simply made sure his parents and siblings knew who he was. For example, when he told the family he’d be joining Climbing Cuties, an affinity group for queer climbers, they told him to have fun. On another occasion, Harrison let them know he’d be taking part in a panel for queer climbers, and his parents asked if they could attend. 

As for his boyfriend, Harrison told Climbing they met cute. 

“In the age where most people meet online, we had the classic story of catching each other’s eye from across the room,” said Harrison. Maire told the reporter he recognized Campbell from social media, where the climber does not hide their relationship, and that often results in comments that his posts have “gotten too political.”

“How is that political?” he asked, rhetorically, noting that most of the hateful comments he receives online come from Americans. “Why should I change the way I feel just because of someone else’s perception of me?” he said. 

Last November, the only climber to top the men’s finals route during the IFSC Oceania Qualifier in Melbourne was Harrison. Watching him ascend were his parents and boyfriend, as he clipped the final draw and collapsed inward, his hands covering his face as he was lowered down. He had punched his ticket to Paris with this win. 

Once he was on the ground, Harrison made a beeline to Maire, where they hugged and kissed, as recorded on Instagram.

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A post shared by Campbell Harrison (@campbell_harrison547)

The Washington Mystics will be having their upcoming Pride game on Saturday against the Dallas Wings.

The Mystics Pride game is one of the team’s theme nights they host every year, with Pride night being a recurring event. The team faced off against the Phoenix Mercury last June. Brittney Griner, who Russia released from a penal colony in December 2022 after a court convicted her of importing illegal drugs after customs officials at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport found vape canisters with cannabis oil in her luggage, attended the game. 

Unlike the NBA, where there are currently no openly LGBTQ players, there are multiple WNBA players who are out. Mystics players Emily Englster, Brittney Sykes, and Stefanie Dolson are all queer.

The Mystics on June 1 acknowledged Pride Month in a post to its X account.

“Celebrating Pride this month and every month,” reads the message.

Celebrating #Pride this month and every month 🏳️‍🌈🫶 pic.twitter.com/yFhDoggAVZ

— Washington Mystics (@WashMystics) June 1, 2024

The game is on Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Entertainment and Sports Arena (1100 Oak Drive, S.E.). Fans can purchase special Pride tickets that come with exclusive Mystics Pride-themed jerseys.