As Pride Month begins in around the country, people are gearing up for celebrations of all sorts. But, three men from Boston are getting ready for a unique celebration of their own.
According to The Washington Post, organizers of the Straight Pride Parade have deemed the event a way to ‘poke fun at the identity politics’ of liberals. In a Facebook post, Mark Sahady spoke about their message.
“For them everything is based upon identity and whether or not one is categorized as a victim or an oppressor,” he wrote. “If you get victim status then you are entitled to celebrate yourself and expect those with oppressor status to defer to your feelings.”
Sahady and his fellow organizers reportedly plan to host the event on August 31st, and have filed a discrimination complaint against Boston for permission to fly their straight pride flag.
The plan for the parade was outlined in a Facebook group. They plan for the parade to include floats, and will run on the same route as the official Boston Pride parade.
John Hugo, another organizer of the parade, told The Washington Post that he and his fellow organizers feel they are “an oppressed majority.”
“We want tolerance, and we want tolerance for everybody–not just like the LGBTQ community,” Hugo said.
The idea might seem like a way to empower those who are not part of the LGBTQ community, but social media is not here for the event. Various tweets called the parade a “sad joke”, and criticized the organizers.
People of Boston are still looking forward to Boston Pride, though! Linda DeMarco, president of Boston Pride, said he group is focused on what she thinks will be the largest Boston Pride parade to date.
“We are looking forward to seeing our straight friends, family, and neighbors at the Boston Pride parade and festival this Saturday along with members of the LGBTQ community.”
