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The Injustice of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade: A Postmortem
The Injustice of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade: A Postmortem By Michael Boyajian There was a time that although I am not Irish I would exuberantly celebrate the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in New York. With spirits high from the pending arrival of Spring I would wear green, work the governor’s brunch before the parade, watch the parade with my wife up by the Metropolitan Museum of Art where we would enjoy a fine lunch of corn beef and cabbage followed that very evening by another meal of corn beef and cabbage. All day I would get choked up by the passing bag pipers and elderly Irishmen would come up to my wife and say she had the map of Ireland on her face. But these days I am saddened when I watch the parade. I don’t see 150,000 happy and smiling Irish Americans. I see 150,000 homophobes marching down Fifth Avenue. You see in Ireland Gays are treated equally yet across the ocean in New York they are second class citizens when it comes to the parade because to this day Gay Irish groups are forbidden from marching in the parade under their own banner. A funny thing when you think about it because New York is a Gay capital with a progressive City Council and a friendly pro Gay media. But because organizers are considered a private group they can keep out groups they don’t want in. Sure they’ll claim that there is a waiting list to march but that is just a pretext for discrimination that is especially striking when you consider that the parade route is along a public avenue, protected by public police and first responders and marched in by all manner of elected officials. Yes, your tax dollars contribute to the cost of operating the parade. In my eyes that, makes the parade a public event sponsored by none other than you and me and certainly not a private parade. But the problem is this, city merchants depend on parade crowds for a large part of their annual profits and that is the crux of the problem. Because of the financial advantage of the parade elected officials are willing to look away from this discrimination. Big bucks rule the roost and no one wants to risk shuddering the parade and so to hell with equality. So it is OK to have thousands of under the drinking age kids rolling into the parade drunk before 10AM but God forbid you allow a handful of Gays march under their own banner. It makes you wonder how such a joyous event can have such an ugly face and begs to ask why those with so much happiness can deny others equal access to a share of that happiness. End
JB This issue was hardfought back in the 1980s and on into the 90s. I don't know if the current policy is just a hangover of those fights, but it all comes out of the "civil rights" of free speech and assembly protected by the US and NY Constitutions. Government participation should only be incidental, ie. to maintain order, etc. The actual participation of various governmental actors is lamentable, but that's just how the politics of these things go, I guess. It is noteworthy that several supporters of various gay rights initiatives generally march in the NYC St. Patrick's Parade every year. As to the "hypocracy" issue, just remeber hypocracy is a lot like salt--- just a little normally adds to the flavor of things, too much both ruins the taste and will lead to an early death.
Enough of this garbage. No one goes to the St. Patrick's Day Parade to watch people march under the banner of who or what they decide to sleep with. Gays have been marching in the parade for many years. They understand that it's about celebrating the Irish Spirit and quite frankly they realize that their particular sexual preferences are neither important or interesting to anyone who is attending. Anti-Church fanatics have been causing this crap for years. Get over yourselves. It isn't all about you. If you have a problem with what the Catholic Church says is appropriate in a parade dedicated to the Catholic Patron Saint of the Archdiocese of New York then stay home and work on your outfit for the next gay parade. Maybe someone there will care. I do agree with you on this issue,it's completely illegal.Now in most countries it's legal but keeping them away from the parade is simply injustice for them. Suvaan, The one and only Guard Patrol System is now here for you to enjoy.
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I understand your perspective and have different reactions. One is that homosexuals are not barred from marching... just advertising with a banner. There must be covert ways to advertise one's orientation to either march or watch. On the other hand, the "Church" has such nasty history of homosexual activity involving priests and brothers who took advantage of young boys (my brother being one) I can see both the hypocricy and the denial in refusing homosexuals. Then of course since the"Church" forbids homosexual acts it would seem contrary to allow the group to march. And then what would occur when they do march in terms of reactions of the crowd? Don't know. I think the powers that be need to come to terms with this whole attitude and issue before they will allow homosexuals to march openly. Ironic that abuse in Ireland is on the forfront of the news too.