DETROIT, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Pride Month is marketed as a celebration of inclusion and self-expression. But one Detroit Tigers fan learned those principles may come with an asterisk: certain viewpoints are tolerated, while others can get you escorted out of Comerica Park.
According to a report from New Media Detroit, a woman who is now identified as Paige Combs-Morgan says she was escorted from a Tigers game over wearing a shirt that read “Jesus Over Pride.”
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The incident occurred on June 19 after television cameras picked up her seat location behind home plate. Combs-Morgan says stadium staff informed her that other fans had complained about the shirt’s message.
Three words and many security staffers.
Combs-Morgan wasn’t waving signs, throwing food, or yelling at fans. Instead, she says she was attending the game with relatives while wearing a shirt with three words on it: Jesus Over Pride. According to her account, multiple stadium employees and police officers eventually became involved in removing her from the ballpark.
The view from behind home plate.
Combs-Morgan told New Media Detroit she wore the shirt as a quiet expression of her Christian faith. She said she became concerned by debates surrounding Pride Month events in Major League Baseball and the treatment of players who publicly expressed their religious beliefs. In the interview, she shared, “That’s where I found it an issue because we should make sure that we’re expressing our faith.” Combs-Morgan maintains that fans have the right to express their views peacefully and says she should have been permitted to wear the shirt throughout the game.
What do the Detroit Tigers say about it?
However, according to a report from the Detroit News, the team had a different take on what happened. They said in a statement, “We received several complaints from fans seated behind home plate during Friday’s game, who reported another fan’s behavior as being disruptive to their ballpark experience. The behavior included frequent walks and poses across the front row of seats in camera- visible areas, obstructing others from being able to watch the game.”
The statement goes on to say, “Our staff warned the fan that she would be ejected if the behavior continued, as it violated our fan code of conduct. She was later escorted from the ballpark because the behavior persisted, and not because of her attire.” They explained their fan code of contact is available online and that “one of the first expectations listed being that guests should refrain from any action that disrupts other guests’ enjoyment of the game.”
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Despite the statement, Combs-Morgan says she was told by several park employees that it was her shirt was offending people. She disagreed. That is why during the sixth inning, she posed for the cameras and held out her arms to show off her shirt. After that, she left to get a drink and police officers and Comerica Park employees approached her.
What are the rules?
According to Comerica Park’s code of conduct rules, guests may be removed for obscene, vulgar, abusive, threatening, or discriminatory behavior, displaying obscene or indecent messages, disrupting the enjoyment of other fans, or refusing reasonable requests from stadium personnel. The policy also contains a broad catch-all provision stating that “Ilitch Sports + Entertainment reserves the right to prohibit anything deemed inappropriate.”
Will it end here?
Combs-Morgan says she won’t be doing anything further about her removal from the stadium. She said, “I’m not going to file a lawsuit, and I’m making this a big civil rights thing. Jesus wouldn’t seek money, and I’m not seeking money either. But I do plan on wearing that shirt again. Maybe not to that venue, but I’ll keep wearing it, because I have a right to get this message out, too.”
