St. Patrick's Day Parade 1991 and Mayor Dinkins Remembered


St Patrick’s Day parade homophobia protest: Paul Muldoon, Roger Casement and the AOH
New York Times poem on March 17th, 1992 evoked gay nationalist hero to challenge ban

Alison Gardner, Irish Times
March 14, 2019

St Patrick’s Day is a global celebration of all things Irish. A vital part of most festivities is the parade, a tradition started in the United States in the 19th century and one that has had its fair share of controversy. Engaging with the history of these controversies reveals how much – or little – has changed in popular politics over the decades.

The 1991 New York parade became infamous after the Ancient Order of Hibernians’ (refusal to let the Irish Lesbian and Gay Organization march under their own banner. When ILGO did march as guests of a local division of AOH, alongside the mayor David Dinkins, they received shocking homophobic abuse. Dinkins likened the level of vitriol to “marching in Birmingham, Alabama” during the civil rights movement. The message was clear: for some in the Irish diaspora, you couldn’t be Irish and gay.

 

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