The Montreal Canadiens held their Pride Night on Saturday and among the cool offerings is an auction of autographed rainbow jerseys of 32 players, along with a jersey signed by the team.
The autographed team jersey is currently attracting the highest bid at $2,000 (bidding closes Tuesday), with goalie Carey Price’s jersey worn during warmups getting a bid of $1,760 and the one of team Hockey is For Everyone ambassador Nick Suzuki going for $1,610.
Suzuki, in a video, celebrated the team’s Pride Night, saying, “We believe no barriers, including sexual orientation or gender identity, should prevent members of the LGBTQ community, from enjoying the sport we all love, whether on the ice, in the locker room or in the stands.”
The warmup jerseys, according to the NHL, are “adorned with the Progress Pride Flag. The iconic symbol of unity, which was originally created by Gilbert Baker in 1978, was redesigned in 2018 by nonbinary artist Daniel Quasar who incorporated the transgender flag and added black and brown stripes to the traditional six-color rainbow. Shaped into a chevron to symbolize a need for forward movement, these news colors represent the singular experience of those most marginalized within the LGBTQ+ community, such as queer people of color, gender nonconforming and trans people, as well as those living with HIV/AIDS.”
The proceeds from the auction go to You Can Play, which fights homophobia in sports, and GRIS-Montréal, a “research and social intervention group which demystifies homosexuality, bisexuality and gender identities in schools.”
The Canadiens’ rainbow jersey looks really sharp and the auction is a great way to raise money and some awareness.
