Guinness Withdraws Sponsorship of St. Patrick’s Day Parade

Posted by Unknown on Sunday, March 16, 2014

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N.Y. / Region |Guinness Withdraws Sponsorship of St. Patrickâ€™s Day Parade

http://nyti.ms/1ic1H65

Guinness USA has dropped its sponsorship of the St. Patrickâ€™s Day parade in New York, joining protests of a ban on public expression of gay pride.

â€œGuinness has a strong history of supporting diversity and being an advocate for equality for all,â€ the brewer, based in Norwalk, Conn., said on Sunday in a statement.

â€œWe were hopeful that the policy of exclusion would be reversed for this yearâ€™s parade. As this has not come to pass, Guinness has withdrawn its participation. We will continue to work with community leaders to ensure that future parades have an inclusionary policy.â€

The parade is expected to proceed as planned along Fifth Avenue in Manhattan on Monday despite the withdrawals of major sponsors like Guinness, the Dublin brewer known for its stout, and of city leaders, including Mayor Bill de Blasio, over the issue of inclusiveness.

Organizers of the annual parade have said gay groups could march in the procession but could not carry signs or identify their sexuality. Organizers could not be immediately reached by telephone Sunday night.

Guinnessâ€™s decision was applauded by gay rights groups that had threatened to boycott its products. The Stonewall Inn, widely regarded as the birthplace of the gay rights movement, canceled plans to cease selling Guinness starting on Monday.

â€œToday, Guinness sent a strong message to its customers and employees: Discrimination should never be celebrated,â€ said Sarah Kate Ellis, the president of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, or Glaad.

With Heineken USA having withdrawn on Friday, Guinnessâ€™s decision leaves Ford Motor Company as the paradeâ€™s last big sponsor, according to Glaad.

The Boston Beer Company, which makes Samuel Adams, dropped its sponsorship of Bostonâ€™s parade.

A version of this article appears in print on March 17, 2014, on page A17 of the New York edition with the headline: Guinness Withdraws Sponsorship Of Parade .