The recent dispute over the threatened exclusion of a gay veteran’s group from the South Boston St. Patrick’s Day parade reminds us of past controversies over the event that have landed in the courts.

The parade is an old Boston tradition.

In his last term as Mayor James Michael Curley gave the South Boston Allied War Veterans Council  authority to conduct the parade.

In the 1990’s the Council fought all the way to the United States Supreme Court to exclude a gay veteran’s group from the parade. This case is recounted in the book

“From Trial Court to Supreme Court” (See Catalog Record)

Just last year, a disagreement over the exact route of the parade  ended with a judge’s decision.

Stay tuned for the next march to the Courthouse.