NHL player boycotts Pride-themed warmups, praised by coach

[redheadbaker]

For pre-game warmups, the players wear jerseys with rainbow numbers on their jerseys, and rainbow tape on their sticks. The team also hosted a pregame skate for local LGBTQIA+ youth and officers from the Greater Philadelphia G.O.A.L organization, which advocates for LGBTQ+ first responders and military members. The rainbow jerseys and sticks were auctioned off to raise money for charity.

You don't want to support the team's charity theme of the night, fine. Then you shouldn't play that night, you're a healthy scratch that night.

I'm not surprised that there's an anti-LGBTQIA+ player on the team, but I'm extremely disappointed by the coach and team's response to it, and I emailed them to say so. We're supposed to go to a game in February, and I want to sell the tickets. H thinks I'm overreacting. 

www.cbsnews.com/news/ivan-provorov-lgbtq-pride-night-jersey-philadelphia-flyers/

Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov did not participate in the team's LGBTQ+ Pride Night festivities Tuesday night — which included wearing a rainbow-themed warmup jersey prior to the Flyers' game against the Anaheim Ducks.

The 26-year-old Provorov, who says he is Russian Orthodox, explained that he chose not to participate because of his religious beliefs.

"I respect everybody's choices," he told reporters after the game at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, which the Flyers won 5-2. "My choice is to stay true to myself and my religion."

Flyers coach John Tortorella did not bench Provorov, and came to his defense, saying Provorov is "being true to himself and to his religion."

[erbear]

This makes me furious. I am so angry that he was allowed to play. It’s pride night. Refusing to wear the warmups says I don’t give a shit about your humanity. Fuck Provorov and Totorella both.

[erbear]

Jan 19, 2023 20:04:48 GMT -5 erbear said:

This makes me furious. I am so angry that he was allowed to play. It’s pride night. Refusing to wear the warmups says I don’t give a shit about your humanity. Fuck Provorov and Totorella both.

I tweeted at the team and I’m not rushing to go to a game this season.

[redheadbaker]

Jan 19, 2023 20:05:38 GMT -5 erbear said:

Jan 19, 2023 20:04:48 GMT -5 erbear said:

This makes me furious. I am so angry that he was allowed to play. It’s pride night. Refusing to wear the warmups says I don’t give a shit about your humanity. Fuck Provorov and Totorella both.

I tweeted at the team and I’m not rushing to go to a game this season.

I emailed thru the contact page on the team's website and got a note back from the SVP of ticketing at the arena saying, as a member of the LGBT+ community, it was a tough night for her, but not much else. 

[erbear]

Jan 19, 2023 20:10:16 GMT -5 redheadbaker said:

Jan 19, 2023 20:05:38 GMT -5 erbear said:

I tweeted at the team and I’m not rushing to go to a game this season.

I emailed thru the contact page on the team's website and got a note back from the SVP of ticketing at the arena saying, as a member of the LGBT+ community, it was a tough night for her, but not much else. 

That’s really sad. I’m sorry for her

[livinitup]

What bible says you can’t dress up in rainbows and skate with people and not be a dick??

It’s a warm up. No one is making you do anything but skate.

[underwaterrhymes]

People suck.

Why does anyone give a shit who someone loves?

[seeyalater52]

Today I’ve reached levels of anger I never before believed were possible. I hadn’t seen this story. I’m just… steaming. I’ve been back and forth in 5 states on dozens of absolutely shitty genocidal anti LGBTQ+/anti trans bills introduced in state legislatures. I’m battling in my organization and how we refuse to engage. I’m battling with our partners about why there aren’t more allies given the absolute wave of madness happening. I’m battling with myself and how unsustainable it is to try to exist in this world as a queer person and how damn close I am to quitting my job and walking away from my life’s work. I’m deeply sad and so, so unbelievably angry.

Sorry, I know this is off topic. I’m very not ok.

[redheadbaker]

Jan 19, 2023 21:49:31 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Today I’ve reached levels of anger I never before believed were possible. I hadn’t seen this story. I’m just… steaming. I’ve been back and forth in 5 states on dozens of absolutely shitty genocidal anti LGBTQ+/anti trans bills introduced in state legislatures. I’m battling in my organization and how we refuse to engage. I’m battling with our partners about why there aren’t more allies given the absolute wave of madness happening. I’m battling with myself and how unsustainable it is to try to exist in this world as a queer person and how damn close I am to quitting my job and walking away from my life’s work. I’m deeply sad and so, so unbelievably angry.

Sorry, I know this is off topic. I’m very not ok.

You should not apologize. We care about you and are here for you. I just wish there was more we could do.

[underwaterrhymes]

seeyalater52 - sending love to you. I was in a pride meeting a few weeks ago and couldn’t stop crying. Our org is trying to make strides, but we still have people who are having to work with politicians who are overtly trying to ruin their lives. Our org has said they support their LGBTQIA+ staff, but as I know you know, the $$ that comes from these spaces is vital to the work we do, and it really means that staff have to feel unsafe all the time. It’s hideous and I’m so sorry.

[sonrisa]

Jan 19, 2023 21:49:31 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Sorry, I know this is off topic. I’m very not ok.

A million hugs. 

[mrsukyankee]

My Philadelphia sports team loving family have basically decided to stop watching and supporting this team. Hugs to you, seeyalater52. No one deserves this hate.

[seeyalater52]

Jan 19, 2023 22:27:43 GMT -5 underwaterrhymes said:

seeyalater52 - sending love to you. I was in a pride meeting a few weeks ago and couldn’t stop crying. Our org is trying to make strides, but we still have people who are having to work with politicians who are overtly trying to ruin their lives. Our org has said they support their LGBTQIA+ staff, but as I know you know, the $$ that comes from these spaces is vital to the work we do, and it really means that staff have to feel unsafe all the time. It’s hideous and I’m so sorry.

I’m sorry y’all are feeling it too. Sat through a meeting last week where leadership wanted to discuss which branded swag items to order for pride month 2023 and staff on the committee (it’s an internal Lgbtq issues workgroup for our field activities) and staff were like… we gonna acknowledge the absolute onslaught of bad bills we are refusing to engage on right now or nah? And they were like “we can do both.” And you know what? No ma’am. We actually cannot do Pride month activities if we cannot manage one iota of public empathy about the way trans folks are being attacked. They can miss me entirely with that. I’ve never been this mad in my entire life.

[shauni27]

This is infuriating. I hate that people like this are still out there making life so hard for people like our beloved seeyalater52. Sending you so much love and support, friend.

[wildrice]

I am so sorry you are dealing with all of this, seeyalater52. You deserve to work for an organization where your identity and that of your family is supported.

[breezy8407]

This is rage inducing. Hugs seeyalater52,

[basilosaurus]

And yet desantis is targeting NHL for being too woke.

[scm1011]

How disgusting that his homophobic tantrum was tolerated and he was still allowed to play. (((seeyalater52)))

[taratru]

Don't ever be sorry seeyalater52 Not ever.

[erbear]

Jan 19, 2023 21:49:31 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

Today I’ve reached levels of anger I never before believed were possible. I hadn’t seen this story. I’m just… steaming. I’ve been back and forth in 5 states on dozens of absolutely shitty genocidal anti LGBTQ+/anti trans bills introduced in state legislatures. I’m battling in my organization and how we refuse to engage. I’m battling with our partners about why there aren’t more allies given the absolute wave of madness happening. I’m battling with myself and how unsustainable it is to try to exist in this world as a queer person and how damn close I am to quitting my job and walking away from my life’s work. I’m deeply sad and so, so unbelievably angry.

Sorry, I know this is off topic. I’m very not ok.

Hugs to you. It fucking sucks and it's not fair and I want you to know that there are people out there who care about you, who see you and who love you for exactly who you are, even if they're internet strangers. 

[icedcoffee]

Nope. His religion does not say that. FUCK people who use religion as an excuse to be an asshole. And fuck Putin.

[msmerymac]

This Deadspin article was the first I heard of it (the morning after the game): deadspin.com/ivan-provorov-john-tortorella-flyers-pride-night-lgbtq-1850000020

"But what Tortorella and Provorov don’t realize, or do and just don’t care about, is that they are the reason that teams have Pride nights, that there have to be these dedicated campaigns to show support for the LGBTQ+ community and to let them know they are as welcome in hockey as anyone else. Because hockey, as much if not more than any other sport, has not made any of that community feel welcome for pretty much its entire existence.

The move here, the only correct one, would have been to not let Provorov play. To tell Flyers fans, especially LGBTQ+ Flyers fans, that the organization has their back and will not accept homophobia in any form. Because that’s what it is, no matter how shrouded in his religion Provorov wants to make it and Tortorella wants to wimp out and hide behind too. Torts is a hardass until it really matters. If your religion teaches that some people are less worthy of rights, inclusion, and care because of who they are, your religion is a steaming pile of shit. Plain and simple.

What should be pointed out to both of these dumbfucks is that there’s likely an LGBTQ+ player in their dressing room, who very well might feel like he can’t live openly and comfortably as an NHL player because this kind of crap flows so freely within the league and game. Someone should ask them about that. Provorov is making a statement that he thinks that individual is beneath him, and Tortorella is essentially sanctioning it."


Once again, Gritty is the ONLY REDEEMING THING the Flyers have going for them. 

[tiramisu]

seeyalater52 you never need to apologize for expressing how you're feeling and what you're going through. I'm so sorry your current workplace is so unsupportive when it comes to addressing real issues that will actually make a difference for the LGBTQIA+ community.

As an aside, I don't think it's an overreaction to not want to go to a game and support the team at this point, given how they've handled things.

[seeyalater52]

Jan 20, 2023 9:58:52 GMT -5 wildrice said:

I am so sorry you are dealing with all of this, seeyalater52. You deserve to work for an organization where your identity and that of your family is supported.

Thank you to everyone who responded to my off topic tangent. Y’all are so incredibly nice.



**PDQ**

The last 24 hours have been wild. One of my priority bills that we have sunk so much time and people power into over YEARS got amended with a gender affirming care ban in committee on Thurs and I’ve been reeling. My report in that state is devastated and our inability to decide what we were willing to say publicly about gender affirming care really took the whole bill strategy off the rails. We will probably salvage some sort of recovery and concerted pushback because I nearly quit over it and went straight up the chain with my tantrum but I’ve spent 15 of the past 24 hours sobbing and feel so emotionally drained. This is so hard. My org is well meaning and great in a lot of ways. My immediate team is even better. They’re all with me/us and they keep me from quitting every day. The reality of running health care bills in these red states is that this is not the last time this is going to happen because this assault on trans rights is just getting started. I got out of Lgbtq+ civil rights advocacy and into health care 10 years ago to give myself from distance from this because it ate me up at the start of my career. If this is just business as usual now in health access work I don’t know how I’m going to be able to handle it. There is nothing these people won’t try to ruin for us.

[erbear]

You’re fighting the good fight, seeyalater52. No one would judge if you stepped out of this work, but I hope you keep fighting. You’re a force.

[sonrisa]

Jan 20, 2023 20:21:30 GMT -5 seeyalater52 said:

**PDQ**

Thank you. On behalf of every little kid like mine, thank you. Even if you quit tomorrow,  the efforts you've made still mean so much. 

[pixy0stix]

Fuck these assholes.

[redheadbaker]

I'm still really pissed off. Some players really do make an effort to make the LGBTQIA+ community feel included and accepted and it gets overlooked because of one player.

www.broadstreethockey.com/2023/1/19/23561144/philadelphia-flyers-pride-night-ivan-provorov-scott-laughton-james-van-riemsdyk

I knew when I walked into the Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday night that I was planning to write about Pride night.

As a queer, nonbinary hockey fan, Pride initiatives are deeply important to me. I also think that when evaluating the effort that goes into these nights, voices from the LGBTQ+ community are crucial. We are the ones who are impacted the most. Do we feel uplifted? Welcomed? Was the night put together with care, or did it feel like we were an afterthought? Did it feel like something the team would do organically, or did it feel like the team was pushed to do it because they have to check off a box?

I was going to write about how it felt like a mix of both. I was going to write about the genuine efforts shown by players like Scott Laughton and James van Riemsdyk to show up consistently throughout the year by inviting LGBTQ+ fans to games instead of just slapping Pride tape on a stick for one night and calling it a day.

I was going to write about the sheer emotion I felt when I saw they had reached out to Trin Stephens to bang the ceremonial drum to start the game. Trin was one of the first guests to Laughton and van Riemsdyk’s suite, and through meeting the players, they were inspired to start picking up the game of hockey at 13. A young nonbinary fan was inspired to play because of the care these two gave them. And as I sat in the upper levels and watched Trin be introduced to everyone, I nearly cried because nonbinary people like us are never included in hockey like this.

I was going to write about the lackluster effort the social media team put into the night. Now, if I’m being fair, the social media team puts a lackluster effort into most things (see: van Riemsdyk’s 900 games graphic having “Tony DeAngelo” written along the side instead), but it was clear to see what more the team could be doing when comparing it to what the Washington Capitals posted on their account for their pride night on the same day. The Capitals promoted it days before the event, they collaborated with artists in the LGBTQ+ community, they posted pride flag wallpapers, and they shared infographics to educate people. The Flyers waited until the day of to post anything, and it was just simple documentation of jerseys and such. It would’ve been nicer to actually show real activism and uplift the talents of those in the community.