The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence SPI , also called Order of Perpetual Indulgence OPI , is a charitable, protest, and street performance movement that uses drag and religious imagery to satirize issues of sex, gender, and morality particularly Christian perspectives on these topics and fundraise for charity. In , a small group of gay men in San Francisco began wearing the attire of Catholic nuns in visible situations using camp to promote various social and political causes in the Castro District.
From the original organization in San Francisco, the Sisters have grown throughout the U. These orders are mostly registered as non-profit charity organizations that raise money for AIDS , LGBT-related causes, and mainstream community service organizations, while promoting safer sex and educating others about the harmful effects of drug use and other high risk behaviors. Throughout the movement's history there have been a number of conflicts with Christian communities.
The group has been characterized by several Catholic clergy, organizations and laypeople such as the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights as anti-Catholic and a hate-group for impersonating and mocking Catholic practices and beliefs, including religious sisters.
Their approach and appearance was not new or extraordinary for the place or time. Starting in the s, the Castro District began transitioning from a working class Irish Catholic district going through significant economic decline.
A gay bar opened on Market Street and gradually, gay men began to migrate to the neighborhood. The Castro District had been publicized nationally as a major gay neighborhood and was targeted by evangelists who took weekly trips to loudly preach to the residents about the immorality of homosexuality. On April 14, Saturday of Easter weekend , three men Ken Bunch, Fred Brungard, and a friend dressed as nuns with habits, that Bunch had acquired several years before, walked through the Castro.
