At last year's Christmas Parade a local pharmacy (one that sells HIV medications nationwide) showed up with a float and participants decked in rainbow spirit. Members of PFLAG (Parents & Friends of Lesbians & Gays) were on the float with rainbow clothing and flags.
The Christmas Parade has written policies that state, "Floats without a clear Christmas theme will be considered commercial and thus will be stricken from the parade." The policies are dated 2017. A simple google search will show them.
So the folks running the parade pulled the float from the lineup and it made people mad. Really mad. The leader is an African American woman and there were accusations of racial bigotry as well as bigotry against gay people.
The woman has been quite vocal about having been pulled from the parade. Today the board of directors for the parade announced they are terminating the parade. Forever.
The parade, which should be for children, has become an institution for all sorts of people. Running on the day before Thanksgiving, it kicks off the holiday season for everyone in town.
I've always joked that so many locals are IN the parade, there's no one left to WATCH it. But over the past eight years of participating in the parade, I got to see so many people lined up, camping out, tailgating, leaning out of office windows, packed on city sidewalks five deep, I rescind my statement.
It's a wonderful experience, and now it's over.
People are hot. HOT, people. Comments in the newspaper online as well as the woman's personal FB page run from 'I hate you,' to calling her a word that starts with a C. Threatening statements like, "I open carry and so do all my friends."
This is BEYOND.
I'm sad to see it play out and sad to see the bitterness and inappropriate behavior over a parade celebrating the birth of the Prince of Peace. I don't worship Jesus but I do respect the season as a time for kindness.
Namaste, y'all.
Postscript. Well. It seems I was a little too gracious in trying to analyze the motivations of the Parade Board. They have come out and SAID, in SO MANY WORDS, they cancelled the parade because of PFLAG. Now this is horse of a different color. I'm not deleting my post; it's still a shame that people are abusive over this thing. But I am commenting here to set the record straight.
