"If the mayor wants to ruin a Boston tradition,so be it. But I wouldn't want that on myconscience," he said. GLIB members agreed that theparade will lose some of its luster, not becauseof the missing fire trucks and colorful policeunits, but because of its discriminatory stance.

"This is not Irish pride," said Catherine Finn,spokesperson for GLIB. "It's discriminiation onparade."

Finn said members of GLIB showed "exemplarybehavior" when they marched in the parade in 1992and 1993.

Pride in the Irish Heritage

"We've never been a confrontational group," shesaid. "We are part of the Irish community, and wejust want to share in that community like everyoneelse."

The group is being exclude from this year'sparade solely because its members are homosexual,she said.

Finn said she has received dozens of lettersand phone calls of support from Irish-Americanleaders across the country. In addition, she said,the Irish government has barred anyrepresentatives from its office from participatingin the South Boston parade.

GLIB attorney Gretchen Van Ness said that gaysand lesbians are still the target of a bigotrythat goes largely unnoticed.

"If Blacks, Jews or other protected minoritieshad this happen to them, it would be crystal clearthat this is discrimination," Van Ness said.

But officials from the Catholic Archdiocese ofBoston said the resistance to gay rights stemsfrom broader concerns about family and morality.

"Many activists throw the term 'bigotry' aroundvery loosely and very inaccurately," John Walsh,spokesperson for the Catholic Archdiocese, toldthe Boston Globe.

Van Ness compared her group's efforts toparticipate in the St. Patrick's parade to thestruggles fought by civil rights leaders whosought to march in Selma, Ala., in the 1960s.

Kenan Professor of Government Harvard C.Mansfield '53 said he saw no connection betweencivil rights for Blacks and the present debateover gay rights, however.

Many people in our society would say there issomething very wrong about homosexuality,"Mansfield said. "If it is immoral, then tolerationneed not outweigh morality."

Looking Ahead to 1996