The Blackhawks will not be wearing Pride Night warmup jerseys on Sunday against the Canucks, becoming the third NHL team to make such a decision.
The Chicago Sun-Times reported Wednesday that the organization chose to not wear the rainbow-themed jerseys ahead of the game due to safety concerns over the team’s Russian players. Chicago currently has three players either from Russia or with Russian heritage: defenseman Nikita Zaitsev, forward Philipp Kurashev and goaltender Anton Khudobin.
This decision comes after Russia passed a law in December outlawing “gay propaganda.” The law makes it illegal for citizens to “praise” or “promote” LGBTQ relationships in public, which also includes doing so on social media, per CNN. People also aren’t allowed to suggest that LGBTQ relationships are “normal.”
