Stand up for a definition of Irishness that values human rights and diverse communities!

Please join Irish Queers as we protest LGBT exclusion from the NewYork City St. Patrick's Day Parade. For 18 years, Irish and Irish American queers have been challenging the narrow definition of Irishness set forth by the Ancient Order of Hibernians, a conservative, Catholic, all-male organization that runs many St. Patrick's Day Parades across the country. As a right wing organization, the AOH prohibits all LGBT people and anyone that is pro-choice from OPENLY taking part in their events.

Although the parade has been billed as the largest celebration of Irish culture in the world, the New York Ancient Order of Hibernians and the Catholic Archdiocese have redefined it as a private, religious event (taking place on public streets) where many Irish people are not welcome.

While our fight began in the 1990s within New York's Irish and church institutions, we have learned that the City, the NYPD and the courts are all willing to trample and erase the diverse fabric of the Irish community. Our struggle is not just with the parade organizers and Catholic hierarchy, but with military organizations, the NYPD, the FDNY and other public servants who use the parade to express sentiments of hate and superiority that are disallowed anywhere else.

Please join us on March 17th on Fifth Avenue @ 57th street (on the west side) from 11am - 1pm. Stand up for a definition of Irishness that values human rights and diverse communities!

For more information, send us an e-mail.

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"Gay-bashing tirade shames Christians" opinion piece in Irish Independent

"Since coming to America, I've had any number of people assume that I'm virulently Catholic. To them, that's as Irish as shamrocks and St Patrick's Day drunkenness. In fact, like most Irish people my age -- I'll be 30 in '09 -- I'm not religious at all. And so it would be easy for me to think that the ramblings of old red socks in Rome have no bearing whatsoever on my day-to-day life. He raises his doddery old head above the parapet every so often to say we shouldn't use condoms and that gay people are bad and we all just roll our eyes and vaguely wonder when will he die?"

To read more of this opinion piece by Donal Lynch in response to the pope's latest sexist, homophobic speech, click here.

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In the news...

Irish boyband Boyzone has a male love interest for its openly gay member, Stephen Gately, in their latest music video. Reverend David McCullough, minister of Dromore Reformed Presbyterian Church in Northern Ireland, had this to say about the video:

The message of the Boyzone video is yet another subtle effort of the homosexual propaganda machine. This video, that will be watched by millions, is sending out a deadly message to young people. (?!!!?)

To read more, click here. To watch the video, click here.

Click here to read Maureen Dowd's op-ed column on the soon to be released Harvey Milk biopic and Proposition 8. Harvey Milk was the first openly gay elected official in American history and served on San Francisco's Board of Supervisors. He was murdered by Dan White, an Irish Catholic former policeman and former city supervisor who opposed Milk’s equal rights initiatives for gays.

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New report on LGBT people in the West of Ireland reveals isolation and discrimination

Many LGBT people feel isolated and socially excluded. Isolation and social exclusion are linked to poorer health, lower educational attainments, lower economic success and lower degrees of happiness and fulfilment. Conversely, embracing diversity is known to have proven effects on the individual and larger community. This very important piece of research contains evidence of the realities faced by LGBT people in the region. It is my hope that this will result in a more inclusive society here in the West of Ireland, where being lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender will no longer result in experiencing discrimination or isolation.

- Éamon Ó Cuív, Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs speaking on a new report on LGBT people in the West of Ireland.

To read more about the report, click here.

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Donate to Hate - More lies from the NYC St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee

The Irish Echo recently ran an article about how the NYC St. Patrick's Day Committee "needs a helping hand" and is launching an online donation drive. Like every other nonprofit on the planet, the parade committee is bracing itself for a decrease in donations due to the economy.

But in true AOH fashion, the committee is using manipulation and lies in its plea for donations for their annual procession of religious bigotry. They claim the parade is completely funded by individuals, or as they say in their fundraising letter, "completely funded by donations from generous people just like you." This is not entirely true. In a 2007 article published by the Irish Examiner USA, John Dunleavy bragged about the parade committee's links to corporations:

Dunleavy credits his good friend, the late Jim Barker, for bringing in sponsorship for the St. Patrick's Day Parade, which costs between $600,000 - $700,000 to run annually. The figure includes $300,000 for the TV air time, $23,000 for the reviewing stands on Fifth Avenue, as well as permits, sashes, port-o-potties, painting the green line up Fifth Avenue, and other expenses. Until a few years ago, Dunleavy ran the whole operation out of his home. The committee now has a small office in the Bronx and hired an administrative assistant to handle things as the parade continues to increase in size.

"Jim was a master salesman, a modern day PT Barnum," Dunleavy said. "A number of years ago, WPIX-TV, which had broadcast the parade for 35 years, cut back the hours because they couldn't sell the ads. We decided to switch to WNBC-TV, which made it easier to sell the sponsorships. We buy the time, hire our own producer, Mike Mathies, and control the content. Major supporters include Quinnipiac University, Guinness, and Ford Motor Company."

"Jim went to Villanova with Jim O'Connor, an executive at Ford. The Guinness sponsorship is a natural one," Dunleavy explained. "We are fortunate that Frank Comerford, president of WNBC, is on the board of the St. Parade's Parade Committee. In order to get work done, you need a combination of Irish and Irish Americans."

So what is really going on here? Buying air time? Selling sponsorships? It's hard to tell. According to the parade committee's 2007 990, they raised $96,265 in direct public support (translation: from generous homophobic people like you, including foundations and corporations). They raised $388,000 in indirect public support (translation: from other organizations like colleges, AOH chapters and Catholic churches).

In addition to the sponsors mentioned by Dunleavy to the Irish Examiner, other corporate sponsors of the parade include: Yonkers Raceway, CelticBrands.com, The Padded Wagon, Turtle Wax, and US Bank Irish Connections Visa Card.

During the last decade, the parade has had its financial integrity questioned by both AOH insiders and outsiders. In 2001, the New York Times ran an article on William J. Flynn's resignation as president from the parade committee. One of the main reasons mentioned in the article for his resignation were around financial transparency. In 2002, former Attorney General Eliot Spitzer investigated the parade committee's finances. It was alleged that the late Jim Barker and his public relations firm accepted payments from the Ford auto company for parade advertising instead of making payments to the nonprofit entity.

To top it all off, the fundraising plea on one of the parade committee's websites mentions that the city "offers no financial subsidies to the Parade despite the fact that the City take (sic) in millions of dollars in tax revenue from Parade participants."

Well AOH folks, this is the price you pay for having a private, religious procession down Fifth Avenue (a public space) on March 17th. We still have a separation between church and state, and the City has anti-discrimination laws, so your discriminatory event should not be entitled to any financial subsidies.

With the passing of Proposition 8 in California, much attention is being paid to the Mormon Church and other groups that invested so heavily in homophobia. This ridiculous fundraising plea in the Irish Echo has re-reminded us to step up following the homophobic money floating around the Irish American community sponsoring this discriminatory parade.

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Meeting News

Irish Queers will no longer be meeting at the LGBT Center on the first Tuesday of each month. Please e-mail for details about how to connect & get involved.

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New AOH President Against Coalition Building for Immigration Reform

Remember AOH President Jack Meehan and his pledge to ramp up the AOH's anti-choice efforts? He just got voted out at the AOH convention in New Orleans at the end of July. The new AOH president, Seamus Boyle of Philadelphia, has pledged to make immigration reform the main focus of his presidency. Below is a snippet of an interview he gave to IrishPhiladelphia.com:

Q. Do you feel like the Irish need to work with other immigrant groups to achieve reform? I mean, fundamentally, this is not an Irish issue so much as an immigrant issue, is it? Can we really achieve any progress on Irish immigration without finding common cause with, say, Latin American or Asian groups?

A. I think that the Irish have more to offer than some of the other groups and I do not mean to degrade any nationality. The Irish have a head start on other groups because the have a tremendous work ethic, great education and speak English, and that is an advantage for employers. We as Irish are not looking for anything except to be treated fairly.

Sounds pretty racist from over here, Seamus. If you don't mean to degrade any nationality, why are you implying non-Irish immigrants don't have a strong work ethic, are not well educated, and don't speak English? Seamus Boyle and the modern day AOH have much more in common with nativists than they'd like to think, that's for sure.

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NYC Outraged By Cops Gone Wild

WHAT: A Press conference to denounce Cops Gone Wild, a call for an end to the criminalization of those who lawfully document police activities. Speakers will also address the lack of discipline for those who harass, intimidate, and physically assault New Yorkers, especially those Officers who intentionally makes false official statements regarding their misconduct.

WHEN: Wednesday, August 6, 2008 at 10 am

WHERE: In front of One Police Plaza

The latest episodes of police brutality and misconduct captured on video will be the focus of a press conference on Wednesday, August 6, 2008 at 10am, in front of One Police Plaza. The event will bring together an unprecedented number of elected officials, social justice organizations and civil rights groups who are outraged and determined to put a stop to police brutality and the criminalization of those who document it.

Among the groups and individuals expected are: Attorney Norman Siegel, AudreLorde Project, CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities, Casa Atabex Ache, Center for Constitutional Rights, Council Members Rosie Mendez and Charles Barron, FreeWheels Bicycle Defense Fund, Immigrant Justice Solidarity Project,International Action Center, Justice Committee, Make The Road NY, Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, National Congress for Puerto Rican Rights, Nodutdol for Korean Community Development, Peoples' Justice for Community Control & Police Accountability, Social Justice Leadership, Times Up! Environmental Group and VAMOS Unidos.

Click here to watch a 12 minute video showing NYPD officers harass and arrest cyclists and those documenting these arrests during one ride lastyear.

Click here to watch video of NYPD officer repeatedly beating a handcuffed army veteran on the ground with a metal Baton.

Click here to watch video of Officer Patrick Pogan violently knocking Christopher Long off his bicycle on July 25th.

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In the news.....

Iris Robinson is still making news for her homophobic views, most recently comparing same-sex relationships to child abuse. Whatever.

The Northern Ireland Parades Commission has given permission for Belfast Pride to go ahead this Saturday without any restrictions. During the Belfast Pride festivities last weekend, Peter Tatchell, speaking at the "Love is a Human Right" dinner sponsored by Amnesty International, called on Iris Robinson to step down AND claimed King William of Orange had male lovers. To read more, click here.

Foyle Pride was officially launched today in Derry. The festival, which will take place from August 18-25 will feature an "Iris Robinson tribute." Last weekend, the iconic Free Derry wall was painted over to coincide with Pride week by over 100 artists. Check it out:

The Free Derry wall normally looks like this:

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