More Saint Patrick’s Day Parade Boycotts

New York and Boston mayors are boycotting their respective parades to support gay rights, and now Guinness has backed out of the New York parade as well. The Irish brewer had been a key sponsor of the event.

The move came on the same day that Boston’s Irish-American mayor skipped that city’s St. Patrick’s Day parade after failing to hammer out a deal with organizers to allow a group of gay and lesbian activists to march openly.

“Guinness has a strong history of supporting diversity and being an advocate for equality for all. We were hopeful that the policy of exclusion would be reversed for this year’s parade,” the brewer said in a written statement issued by a spokesman for its parent company, Diageo.

“As this has not come to pass, Guinness has withdrawn its participation. We will continue to work with community leaders to ensure that future parades have an inclusionary policy,” Guinness said.

Last week New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said he would not march in the parade because gay and lesbian activists had been again precluded from taking part.

By: William

retired military , former cop, lifelong gym rat and doting grandfather alive and living in Maine