CNN said that the mayors of New York an Boston had expressed their intention to not join in the St. Patrick's Day parades in their cities as a sign of solidarity for lesbians and gay groups. It has been observed that the groups have yet to be invited in the annual festivities.
At a conference last month, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said he will not be participating in the Manhattan parade on Monday. He was quoted as saying, "I simply disagree with the organizers of that parade in their exclusion of some individuals in this city."
On the other hand, de Blasio had hosted a St. Patrick's Day breakfast instead at the Gracie Mansion on Monday morning and also heard mass at St. Patrick's Cathedral.
Boston Mayor Martin Walsh, like his predecessor, also sat out from the parade held last Sunday, CNN said. "I will be participating in a number of other events to honor the Irish heritage of this city and the contributions of Irish-Americans. (However),I'm disappointed that this year, I will be unable to participate in the parade. As mayor of the city of Boston, I have to do my best to ensure that all Bostonians are free to participate fully in the civic life of our city," he stated.
Aside from the mayors, three of the biggest beer companies have also withdrawn their sponsorships for the St. Patrick's Day parades this year because of the non-participation of gay and lesbian groups. Guinness and Heineken withdrew their sponsorships from the New York City parade, while the Boston Beer Co-owned Sam Adams pulled out on Sunday's parade, CNN said.
Perhaps addressing the growing legal and civilian support for gays and lesbians in the country, organizer the South Boston Allied War Veterans Council said on its website that the reason they opted out gays and lesbians from their festivities is that they decline to have sexual orientation to be displayed in the parades.
