Free Republic

The Black Heritage Society is sponsoring the 35th annual "Original" MLK Parade beginning at 10 a.m. on the corner of Texas and Jackson in downtown. Glorice McPherson, event coordinator for the Black Heritage Society, said the festivities will include an awards gala, a health fair, and a groundbreaking for a statue of MLK Jr. Charles Stamps, chairman and CEO for the MLK Parade Foundation, said the parade will have two battle of the bands contests this year instead of just one, as well as the youth parade.

FORT LAUDERDALE— If you're headed to the St. Patrick's Day parade downtown next spring, leave your knives at home. But it soon will be OK if you pack a gun. City commissioners began loosening Fort Lauderdale's long-standing ban on weapons at parades and other public events Tuesday. The change comes in response to a new state law that imposes fines on public officials – and could even oust them from office – if they enforce tougher gun laws than those spelled out in state statute.

Parents seek to stop candy throwing at parades Some British Columbia in are trying to end the practice of throwing candy from floats during parades.   DAWSON CREEK, B.C. — Some British Columbia in are trying to end the practice of throwing candy from floats during parades.The campaign in Dawson Creek is the latest effort by people concerned about children bolting into the parade to scoop up the sweets. Efforts to end candy tossing have been adopted in Kamloops, Prince George and Fort St. John.A Fort St. John town council member and parade marshal, Larry Evans, says float drivers...

Please post your pictures from Independence Day parades, picnics, etc.!

LONDON (AFP) - Showing few signs of slowing down, Queen Elizabeth II -- Europe's longest serving monarch -- marks her 80th birthday on Friday with a host of parties and engagements that run until June. It looks set to be a colourful affair as the royal family enjoys a period of calm compared with a decade ago, when divorce and scandal put the House of Windsors in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. But the celebrations will also be on a smaller scale than a four-day party thrown for Queen Elizabeth's golden jubilee in June 2002, as her 80th...

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world. A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in...

Though rainbow flags were displayed more prominently than campaign signs at the city's annual gay pride parade, politics were on the minds of many marchers and spectators for whom same-sex marriage and equal employee benefits remain decisive issues this election season. Shrieking excitedly as lesbians in black leather roared past on shiny motorcycles, gay police officers in crisp uniforms waved, and drag queens blew kisses as they strutted down Fifth Avenue, Maureen Warren, 24, and her girlfriend, Allison Hansen, 23, reveled in their first gay event in New York City. The women, who plan to marry in March, were visiting...

China parades 'the guilty' to placate Japan By Richard Spencer in Beijing (Filed: 27/04/2005) Chinese police have paraded 42 anti-Japanese protesters on television, in the clearest sign that the communist leadership is determined to halt violent demonstrations and set a friendlier tone towards Tokyo. Some of the detainees, caught on camera hurling bottles and vandalising Japanese restaurants and cars in Shanghai 11 days ago, made public confessions. "I let down my university, my teachers as well as my students," said Yin Xiufeng, a university physical education instructor. "I hope others can learn a lesson from me." The public display of...

I have just succeeded in grossing out a group of Gay Rights activists on another website (which shall remain nameless.) Someone posted a thread about a Gay Rights parade,and enthused about how wonderful it was. Someone else responded to the effect he didn't want to interfere with the rights of Gays,but was very much turned off by the openly sexual conduct of some of the marchers: public performance of acts (at best) performed behind closed doors. One of the Pro-Gays answered immediately: claiming this point of view was proof of homophobic intolerance toward Gays. Another chimed in with the observation...

This weekend in Kemah, TX a great Mardi Gras celebration is going on complete with the Yachty Gras Boat Parade with lots of beads at the Kemah Board Walk. The Truck Parade on Sunday in old town Kemah will have the Hotly Contested Chair of the Galveston Republican Party candidates Sandra Kelly and Chris Stevens in it and all the other Republicans candidates in it. So come on down and cheer them on the Neighbor Hood Democrats will also have a float! I am supporting the challenger Chris Stevens Go to: http://www.kemah.net Scroll down and Click on Hot News

Britain backs away from Iraq victory parade LONDON, May 9 (Reuters) - Britain, careful not to appear triumphalist over Iraq, will not hold a postwar victory parade, government officials said on Friday. Instead, Prime Minister Tony Blair's spokesman said a memorial service to honour the armed forces who fought in Iraq, particularly those who died, is being "actively considered." "The government is deciding how best to mark the extraordinary bravery, professionalism and sacrifice of our armed forces," the spokesman told reporters. "I wouldn't expect a Falklands-style parade. What this is about is honouring those who took part, in particular those...

Taking the 'Victory' Out of City's Victory Parades By THOM SHANKER ASHINGTON, May 3 — Charles Lindbergh, John Glenn and Norman Schwarzkopf were among those who led triumphant processions along lower Broadway's Canyon of Heroes in Manhattan, where throngs also greeted American forces after World Wars I and II. New York's mayor, Michael R. Bloomberg, looking for a reprise, wants to hold a mammoth parade to salute veterans of the Iraq war with ticker tape and cheers. While Bush administration officials say they welcome the offer, they also say they worry about how such events may be perceived around the...