US: Straight Pride Organizers Linked to White Supremacists

The proposed Straight Pride rally in the U.S. city Boston is being organized by people linked with far-right movement and nationalists according to various reports.

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Mark Sahady, the principal organizer of the rally had previously organized and attended events as the leader of the Boston chapter of a group called Resist Marxism

Resist Marxism has links with white nationalists groups and their members are anti-semite according to leaked chats as reported by Think Progress in 2018.

The march is being organized by Super Happy Fun America, which is allegedly a front for the far-right Resist Marxism. The group had applied to the city government to approve the march and said on their website that Brad Pitt was their mascot and showed images of a blue and pink “straight pride flag” and posters parodying LGBTQI slogans.

“We will fight for the right of straights everywhere to express pride in themselves without fear of judgment and hate,” one of the event’s organizers John Hugo, a Republican candidate in the 2018 mid-term elections, said on the website.

“The day will come when straights will finally be included as equals among all of the other orientations.”

After Brad Pitt threatened legal action against the organization, they had to remove his photo as the mascot of the parade.

Along with Shahady and Hugo, Chris Bartley is also a principal organizer of the parade. Like Shahady, Bartley is associated with Resist Marxism.

This January Resist Marxism led a counter-protest against Boston Women’s March. The organization does not have members but it is a meeting hub of white supremacists and nationalists.

The Mayor of Boston Marty Walsh said that permission has not been granted yet but they cannot deny permission based on beliefs.

“Permits to host a public event are granted based on operational feasibility, not based on values or endorsements of beliefs,” Walsh wrote on Twitter.

He, however, added that whatever these groups do, “our values won’t change.

“I invite each and every person to stand with us, and show that love will always prevail. Join us in celebration this Saturday for the @bostonpride Parade and in the fight for progress and equality for all.”