Family: Soldier attacked after Mummers Parade (Philadelphia, Pa.)

WTXF-TV ^ | January 2, 2017

[2ndDivisionVet]

PHILADELPHIA (WTXF) - A soldier’s mom is speaking out after a brutal attack on her son. The serviceman became a target for a violent group after the Mummers parade. He is now in the hospital with a long recovery ahead of him.

"He's such a good kid. He did not deserve this."

Lori Freni was supposed to see her 19-year-old Army serviceman son Austin head back to base after the holidays....

[2ndDivisionVet]

Odd that there's no description of the assailants.

[Kickass Conservative]

Yes, very odd. I wonder why. LOL

[ImNotLying]

Ferals with no baby’s daddy

[Doogle]

THEY had an issue with his military jacket....eyep
jackals. Obamanites.

[exPBRrat]

Naggers?

[FroggyTheGremlim]

Im sorry - I don’t get it - is there a connection between the Mummers and the attack?

[flaglady47]

Pardon my ignorance, but what is a Mummer?

[RU88]

This happens every day in the “City of Brotherly Love.” I’m sad to say that my 22 year old son met a similar fate on the very same day. He got disconnected from the group he was with and made a wrong turn down a side street. Two broken orbital bones, a broken nose, and a broken hand is what he’s got to show for it. He was jumped from behind by four of them and the only thing they took from him was a pack of smokes! No phone, no wallet, nothing except a stinking pack of smokes. I suppose it could have been much worse considering the packs of feral animals roaming Philly’s streets. I actually saw the Fox 29 news van at the entrance of the hospital when I went to see my son. Now I know why. You know for every one of these assaults that get publicity there are probably 20 that don’t and that’s a real problem because people don’t know just how dangerous it really is.

[RU88]

Just to give you an indication of just how bad it is, there are so many assaults that the ambulance drivers don’t even note where they picked up those beaten. I learned this from the cop we talked with in my son’s hospital room. The only thing that was noted was when he arrived at the hospital.

[Travis McGee]

This article has comments following.

http://www.nj.com/camden/index.ssf/2017/01/nj_soldier_allegedly_targeted_brutally_beaten_afte.html

[bgill]

One of the assailants will have the incident on youtube in 3, 2, 1.

[Albion Wilde]

Im sorry - I don’t get it - is there a connection between the Mummers and the attack?

It is a desecration of possibly the most uniquely Philadelphian public event for those who live there. The New Year's Day Mummer's Parade is a long-standing Philadelphia tradition, more than 100 years. Philadelphians join in the merrymaking all up and down more than a mile of the main north-south street on New Year's Day, and also walk all around the neighborhood where most of the Mummer clubhouses are located (South Second St, called "Two Shtreet" by the locals) and where there is a second parade of sorts as the Mummers return to their clubhouses after performing in the official Broad Street parade.

This soldier, his mom and his girlfriend were on their way to a renowned, old-time Philadelphia diner one block west of the Mummer's area, close to a large 6-lane east-west boulevard with a large outdoor shopping mall in the south part of the City which, up until recently, had been a largely working class Italian stronghold, with strong Catholic and family values. But things have changed over the past 15 years or so. There is a housing project not far away from there, and lots of Hispanics and Asians have moved into the area, as well as many A-A folks. It's just not a place where you would expect to be jumped, and it violates not just the individuals, but the entire New Year's ethos in Philadelphia, where everyone wants to have a good time in safety at the famous parade in what used to be called the "City of Brotherly Love." (the new PC tagline is "the City that Loves You Back." barf)

[Albion Wilde]

Mumming is an ancient tradition of mainly the British Isles -- singing and clowning on New Year's Day, and in the old days included shooting off guns to mark the New Year, and possibly begging for treats door-to-door. This tradition came to Philadelphia in the 18th century, and eventually evolved into an organized New Year's Day festival and parade, without the shooting and begging, but with dozens of private Mummer clubs competing for best costumes, best performances, best music, and so forth. Membership is almost entirely working class guys, the kind of guys who would be police and firemen or union workers, although they have let women participate in recent years, and often have children in costume, too. Even the design and execution of the costumes is largely amateur, but very entertaining. There is even a Mummer's Museum in the City to showcase memorabilia and some of the lavish costumes, which often include imported ostrich feathers, satins, sequins, mirrors, and lots of other decorations.

It's an incredible grassroots activity, with clubs starting their preparations for each year's parade the week after the last parade, designing and rehearsing all year. Many of the clubs also give performances throughout the year by invitation at other events, other parades, in other cities or for fund-raising for their very expensive costumes and musical instruments. It's one of the most unique folk traditions in the U.S., on a par with Mardi Gras in New Orleans or Saint Patrick's in Savannah.

Here is the Wikipedia link about the Philadelphia Mummer's Parade.

Here are some costumes with ostrich feathers:

Here is a view of the parade route in 1965: