The U.S. Department of Justice has referred Major League Baseball to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for further investigation after the league warned San Francisco Giants players who wrote Bible verses on Pride Night caps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The controversy began after Giants starter Landen Roupp and relievers JT Brubaker and Ryan Walker wrote Bible verses on their Pride Night caps during San Francisco\u2019s June 12 game against the Chicago Cubs. Roupp wrote “Gen 9:12-16” on his cap, with part of the reference overlapping the rainbow-colored “SF” logo used for the event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
MLB issued a warning about future uniform violations, saying the issue was not the content of the Bible verses but the act of writing on a game uniform. The league later clarified that the warning was “not disciplinary” and “had absolutely nothing to do with the content of the message,” adding that its uniform rules prohibit writing or displaying personal messages on apparel or equipment unless authorized by the league.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now, in a June 18 letter to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, the DOJ\u2019s Civil Rights Division accused the league of potentially burdening the religious rights of the Giants players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The letter, posted by Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon, states that the department has “referred this matter to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for further investigation.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dhillon pointed to MLB\u2019s 2020 decision to allow players to wear “Black Lives Matter” patches on their jersey sleeves during Opening Day games, as well as related social justice messages on league-authorized apparel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“This double standard\u2014under which players may not inscribe Bible verses on hats for one game only but may wear \u2018Black Lives Matter\u2019 patches for one game only\u2014calls MLB\u2019s true motives into question,” the DOJ letter says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The Civil Rights Act prohibits MLB and its franchises from unreasonably burdening the rights of players with religious objections to serving as the League\u2019s vehicle for pro-Pride messages.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The department framed the matter as a potential Title VII issue. Under EEOC guidance, federal law requires employers to reasonably accommodate an employee\u2019s religious beliefs or practices unless doing so would create a substantial burden in the context of the employer\u2019s business. The EEOC also says religious accommodation can include exceptions to workplace dress and grooming rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Federal law is clear: employers must modify their uniform requirements to reasonably accommodate their employees\u2019 exercise of religion,” the DOJ letter says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The Department of Justice will use all available means to hold employers accountable for violating the religious rights of their employees.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For now, MLB has not announced fines or suspensions connected to the Giants caps. But with the DOJ\u2019s referral to the EEOC, the controversy is no longer limited to baseball\u2019s internal rulebook. It is now a federal religious-accommodation matter centered on the collision between Pride Night participation, league uniform control and players\u2019 rights under Title VII.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Roupp addressed his reasoning for writing the verse after Friday’s game, saying that the verse is about representing “God’s covenant.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“It’s just about God’s covenant and a promise that He makes to us that, you know, His faithfulness and His mercy,” Roupp told reporters. “That’s just kind of something I believe in, and I stand firm in that, and I’m thankful we live in a country where, you know, we have the freedom to believe what we want … and express what we want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“There’s no hate at all. It\u2019s just what I stand for, and what I stand in. I believe in God.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gen 9:12-16 is a passage from the Bible. The passage states that God established the rainbow as a perpetual token of the covenant made with Noah and every living creature. It goes on to state that when God sees the rainbow, He will remember His “everlasting covenant” to preserve all life on earth from another global flood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n