Protest Eric Garner verdict - Thurs. 12/4 at 5:30pm

Many protests are planned for tonight and tomorrow in the wake of the failure to indict Eric Garner's killer. Irish Queers are going together tomorrow (Thursday) at 5:30pm, Foley Square. Please join us -- text 917-517-3627 to find us. Others tonight include: 5pm Times Square 7pm Union Square 7pm Rockefeller Center/Christmas Tree light...

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Protest TONIGHT -- against white supremacy & for Black lives.

Outrage, grief, solidarity, action. 5pm at Union Square today - Tuesday Nov. 25 -------------------------------- NOV. 25 -- EMERGENCY RESPONSE PROTEST TO THE FERGUSON GRAND JURY! INDICT Darren Wilson! In NYC, gather at Union Square Park, 17th Street South Side 5pm on TUESDAY 11/25 https://www.facebook.com/events/36772587672964...

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Op-ed in the Irish Echo -- Un-burying Irish queer lives

The Irish Echo has been running letters and opinion pieces challenging the NYC parade organizers to catch up with Irish culture, and drop their ridiculous ban. The miserableness of letting NBC gay employees march, but not Irish LGBTQ groups, is noted. Larry Kirwan wrote a particularly nice piece last week. It's been impossible to post links to those pieces because the paper is not really online, but some clips are here. Today the Irish Echo printed...

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A different conversation in the Irish Echo...

The Irish Echo isn't online in any accessible way, but there's been a pretty rational and supportive conversation happening there about the sad parade sadness. Here are some clips: So many miles, so many changes by Larry Kirwan, 11/18/14 “Where once Irish embassy and consulate officials preferred the lace-curtain certainties of D.C. and NYC, now they travel nationwide to festivals and cultural events, as willing to listen as to lecture. And...

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Join IQ for prisoner letter writing, monthly.

Irish Queers is meeting monthly for political prisoner letter-writing! Please contact us to be added to the announcement list for letter-writing plus eats, drinks, and/or good company. For October we'll be joining ABC's letter-writing/vegan dinner this coming Tuesday, Oct. 14 @ 7pm. After that, we'll be Irish Queers-ing it up with our own writing/meetings, in addition to supporting other folks' events. Here's ABC's event description. Please come! WHAT:...

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Irish/queer communities to Mayor & NYC Council Speaker: the ban is not lifted, keep the pressure on!

Mayor deBlasio & Speaker Mark-Viverito: Keep up the boycott of the NYC St. Patrick’s Day parade until Irish LGBTQ groups can march under their own banner. Oct. 9, 2014 Dear Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Mark-Viverito, Last year, your public boycott of the anti-gay NYC St. Patrick's Day parade finally paved the way for corporate sponsors to drop the parade. Their departure created pressure on NBC, one of the last remaining sponsors...

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Irish LGBTQs to Gay Inc: Please don't apply to march

[This letter was emailed to national LGBT advocacy organizations on Sept. 7 and 8, 2014.] 9/8/14 Dear LGBT advocacy organizations, As we're sure you know, Irish LGBTQ groups have been fighting for inclusion in the NYC St. Patrick's Day Parade for over 20 years. Irish Queers (and its predecessor, the Irish Lesbian and Gay Organization, and other groups and allies) has suffered hundreds of arrests for civil disobedience, many years of protesting from the sidelines, and an endless history of enduring insults, threats and beer bottles thrown...

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Parade "too long" to let IQ in? Catholic League has just made room.

The Catholic League, huge supporter of the parade till now. The NYC St. Patrick's Day parade is a hot mess. Being secretive and bossy and then trying to keep your story straight is super complicated. The parade organizers did something silly when they conspired with NBC to let its gay employee marketing group join the parade, but not Irish LGBTQ groups. Amazingly, it seems like they thought it would pass quietly, or even that they'd be celebrated...

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Statement: Still here, still queer, still Irish; and applying to march.

(Photo: Donna Aceto, Gay City News 9/9/14)Sept. 9, 2014Last week we learned that the NYC St. Patrick's Day parade made a backroom deal to invite OUT@NBC Universal, a gay marketing group, to march in the 2015 parade. Today, Irish Queers are applying to march in the 2015 St. Patrick’s Parade, along with Lavender and Green Alliance and St. Pat’s for All. It’s no secret that parade organizers don’t want to admit that Irish LGBT people are part of...

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Join IQ for press conf. - applying to march!

Please join Irish Queers, the Lavendar and Green Alliance and St. Pat's for All this Tuesday as we announce our applications to march in the St Patrick's Day parade in 2015.Tues. Sept. 9, 9amSteps of the NY Public Library, 40th St and Fifth Ave.!Last week parade organizers announced a secret deal permitting only the gay employee group of the parade's corporate sponsor -- and not any Irish LGBTQ groups -- to march in the parade. We apply while remembering that ILGO was also told by the parade organizers to “apply to march”. The parade...

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Statement on St Patrick's Parade/OUT@NBC announcement

Irish Queers -- along with the scores of LGBT individuals, groups, and allies who have fought since 1991 for a parade that includes the whole Irish community -- is learning about the change in the NYC St Patrick's Day parade at the same time as the rest of New York City and the Irish community. We welcome this cracking of the veneer of hate, but so far Irish LGBT groups are still not able to march in our community's parades. The fight continues. This is a deal that was made behind closed doors between parade organizers and one of their last...

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Lawsuit challenging NYPD & FDNY on bigoted St. Patrick's parade

The LGBTQ protest of the homophobic, religious right NYC St. Patrick’s Day parade made big progress this year. The boycott made international headlines, and major sponsors dropped out. But incredibly, the NYPD and FDNY still insist they have a “right” to join in with the homophobia, as if anti-discrimination laws (and the Constitution) are just a suggestion. So we’re taking it to court. We’re bringing a lawsuit arguing that the NYPD and FDNY are sending a message that LGBTQ New Yorkers’ rights, safety, and inclusion really don’t...

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O HIJINKS! Bill Donohue can march in NYC Pride - but does he want to?

File under hilarious unintended consequences (Irish Queers' or Bill Donohue's, take your pick.) Right-Catholic bigot Bill Donohue has applied to march in Pride. Unfortunately for him, NYC Pride organizers said "sure!" Now he's stuck with it -- although apparently he hasn't actually registered yet and is trying to wiggle out. Major kudos to Heritage of Pride for rolling with the punches. Below are the news clips from March 20 and 21, 2014. Your...

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Ireland & around there: News clips from St. Patrick's Day protest

The Guardian | Associated Press | 3/17/14 New York mayor to skip St Patrick's Day parade over gay rights dispute http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/17/new-york-mayor-skip-st-patricks-day-parade Irish Times | 3/17/14 | Simon Carswell Guinness pulls sponsorship of New York parade over gay ban http://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/us/guinness-pulls-sponsorship-of-new-york-parade-over-gay-ban-1.1728158 Irish Times | 3/17/14 | Simon Carswell Taoiseach Defends Decision to March in New York Parade http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/taoiseach-defends-decision-to-march-in-new-york-parade-1.1728472 Irish...

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