Catholic Group Claims Gays Not Reason It Will Boycott St. Patrick’s Day Parade

The Catholic League will boycott next year’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade, but claims the ban on gay groups being dropped has nothing to do with their decision.

This may be the last photo you will ever see of the Catholic League marching in the New York City St. Patrick’s Day Parade. The militant group’s President, Bill Donohue, today announced his Catholic defenders will boycott the parade, but is insisting it has absolutely nothing to do with parade organizers dropping their two decade old ban on gay organizations marching.

“The Catholic League, which has marched in New York City’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade for 20 years, will not do so in 2015,” Donohue announced.

Donohue insists that before the change allowing one LGBT organization to march next year was made, “I asked them to pledge that a pro-life Catholic group would also be permitted.”

I was told that a formal change in the rules had been approved and that a pro-life group would march. Now I am being told that the list of marching units is set and that no pro-life group will march in next year’s parade. Accordingly, I have decided to withdraw our participation.

Donohue did not mention if a pro-life group had even applied to march, or had withdrawn, just merely that one was not on the schedule.

He also insists his “reasons for withdrawing from the parade have nothing to do with Cardinal Dolan or with gays.”

It has to do with being betrayed by the parade committee. They not only told me one thing, and did another, they decided to include a gay group that is neither Catholic nor Irish while stiffing pro-life Catholics. This is as stunning as it is indefensible.

Meanwhile, New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan will be the Grand Marshal.

Donohue earlier this year tried but failed to construct a massive boycott of Guinness, Sam Adams, and Heineken beers, in defense of the Parade’s organizers. Now the tables have turned. 

Want to see if his boycott worked? Head over to your local neighborhood bar, or even grocery or liquor store and see if you can still buy any of those brands.

 

Image by Peter Roan via Flickr