For the 33 years I have been associated with the United Irish Societies of Montreal, the mantra recited by those in positions of authority, including me, is that the annual Parade is a celebration and not a demonstration. In other words, the organization stays above the political fray.
This seems to have not always been the case, however. Although we have always said the first Parade under UIS direction occurred in 1929, the March 16, 1928 Montreal Gazette reports “The parade is under the direction of the committee of the United Irish Societies of Montreal with Prof. John 1. McCaffrey as chairman, and Wm. C. Hickey, jr. as secretary, assisted by the several parochial committees. The design and arrangement of the various floats is in the hands of the publicitysecretary, John Loye.”' Among the very first in the order of procession that year was the Ancient Order of Hibernians, the Irish Republican League, and the Gaelic League.
In doing a little research to gain some knowledge about The Irish Republican League of Canada (IRL), I learned that it was a relatively minor organization that attracted only a fraction of support —and opposition — of the Self Determination for Ireland League according to an article found on rte.ie . In July 1 922 the IRL organized a lecture by Irish republican labour activist Jim Larkin at Montreal's Auditorium Hall on Ontario Street.
In a short article found in the November 27, 1922 Le Devoir, John Loye of the Irish Republican League is reported to have written to the Lord Mayor of Dublin “Au nom de l'humanité, nous en appelons au gouvernement de l'Etat libre pour qu'it relâche Mary MacSwiney et cesse l'execution barbare des prisionniers républicains d’lrlande”z Clearly, the IRL was a politically motivated organization as was John Loye.
In postwar Canada in 1947, the world was a changing place. The forces of evil lost to the allies in Europe and things were gradually returning to normal. The March 11 Montreal Gazette reported that The Catholic Register, a weekly publication for English speaking Catholics, stated editorially that Yugoslav Consul General in Montreal Zako Popovitch “has lied about His Holiness the Pope ... about the slandered Archbishop of Zagreb and insulted the Roman Catholic Church in general” by implying both the Church and the Pope were accused of the forced conversion of Serbs and of collaborating with the Germans during the war. The 1947 St. Patrick's Parade, held on Sunday March 16, went on as planned without incident. However, at the post parade dinner that evening held at the Queen's Hotel, things seconded a resolution that Yugoslav Consu[ General Zako Popovitch be declared persona non grata in Canada and that he be recalled through regular diplomatic channels. The news of the unanimously passed resolution was transmitted to Prime Minister Mackenzie King and External Affairs Minister Louis St. Laurent.* By April, Popovitch was instructed by the Yugoslav government that he was to return to Belgrade. Into the 1960s and 1970s the Parade progressed towards the family friendly, and increasingly multi cultural celebration we have come to expect.
There have been, however, a number of parade entries or spectating groups that have challenged the mantra of it being a celebration and not a demonstration. For example, according to the March 20, 1972 Montreal Star, a group called AID — Action for Irish Distress was permitted to participate that year. In an advertisement in the Montreal Star by AID promoting a religious service at “Our Lady, Queen of the World”to take place on February 2, 1972 they list
In Memoriam the names of thirteen men “Shot to death in Derry, Ireland, Sunday, January 30, 1972”which, as we know, was Bloody Sunday. And so the inclusion of AID in the 1972 Parade completely surprises me.
According to the March 15, 1976 Montreal Star reporting on the previous day's parade, it is noted that “The Montreal Pro Life organization struck a serious note with a f[oat depicting babes in arms, children at play and old folk around the fireplace and “The United Farm Workers of America got in on the picture with a small float striking at discrimination against grape pickers.” Both can be considered politically motivated entries, I think.
In 1989, on the unrealized threat of Mouvement Québec frangais disrupting that year's celebration, Grand Marshal Rev. Bill McCarthy said “All went well and that's how it should be. This is a celebration, not a demonstration.”6 In our parade booklet, commonly known today as the SGB, in recent years in the rules and regulations section, the organization states “... any applicant with intent of having a demonstration or promoting a politica[ cause of any kind will not be accepted.” In the late 1990s into the 2000s, the message in the rules and certainly find other instances where our presidents, parade directors, and other officials have publicly pronounced on the Parade's non political vocation.
In recent years we have had the occasional flare up of linguistic shenanigans from French language groups that amounted to nothing. We have also seen the Protest Against Police Brutality group catch on in recent to our avoidance of March 15 as Parade Day and threaten to crash our party. It has never materialized.
In a February 9, 2009 e-mail from Parade Director Beverly Murphy to Ying Zhu of the Falun Dafa group, Beverly advised Falun Dafa that it would not be allowed back in the Parade. She stated “Last year there were political pamphlets handed out to the spectators watching the parade even though it was clearly stated in our rules that we are a non political event and we wiil not tolerate any political advertising” Falun Dafa mounted a campaign to put pressure on politicians, on clergy, and on the Parade's main sponsor. The United Irish Societies held steady and stood by its decision.
Respectfully submitted,
Ken Quinn, Historian January 16, 2025
Ken's blog can be found HERE
