The Associated Press reported this evening that Major League Baseball has outlawed “offensive” hazing. Specifically, teams are no longer allowed to dress rookies as women or female characters in those end-of-year hazing rituals that pop up on social media each September.
Good. We’ve been criticizing this practice for some time around these parts. Hazing is, by definition, an act of humiliation. Which, fine, if players want to haze rookies, let them. But the notion that dressing them as women or feminine characters is inherently humiliating is itself inherently degrading to women. And besides, it’s dumb. I mean, how bad a hazer are you if you can’t do better than “hahaha, you’re a girl!”
So bully for MLB for outlawing this juvenile and retrograde practice.
Now, if the league would only extend its ban on “offensive” apparel to the uniforms currently worn by the reigning American League champions . . .