Irish eyes were smiling at the Westhampton Beach St. Patrick’s Day Parade on Saturday March 12th. The sun was shining and the air was cool as everyone gathered to celebrate along Mill Road and Main Street.
The parade kicked off at noon with Grand Marshall Brian Crouse leading the way followed by the sounds of bagpipes and fire sirens. The WHBHS Pep Band also marched along with other unique floats, fire departments, local businesses, and townspeople.
Main Street was packed with people hanging out on the sidewalks and by local restaurants like Funchos, Margarita Grille and the Patio. After the parade, a carnival was held at Great Lawn for families to attend, to play games and to go on rides.
After several incidents at past parades, the crowds were also filled with a large amount of policemen, either patrolling areas or riding around on bicycles. This year there was a huge outbreak of violence during the parade that occurred in the back alley by Funchos where most high school students hung out. According to 27east.com, the police had to break up a fight involving as many as 75 teenagers by Funchos. Since the mob of teens wouldn’t disperse, the police were forced to use pepper spray to move the uncooperative crowd. The area was finally blocked off at 2 pm.
This violence put a slight damper in what would have been a fun filled parade. Hopefully next year people will remember that parades were created to bring people together to celebrate, not fight. As sophomore Dineen O’Rourke said, “Parades should be peaceful and fun, not violent and disruptive.”
