(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin is not backing away from his decision to stay away from this year’s Pride Parade in his city, because of a a continuing dispute over the participation of police officers.
Aurora police officers have previously marched in the city’s Pride Parades, celebrating the LGBTQ+ community in uniform. However, organizers asked that the officers not wear their uniforms or weapons this year.
The head of the Aurora Pride organization said some members of the community have been harassed by police and might feel "anxious" because of the uniforms and guns.
Mayor Richard Irvin, a Gubernatorial candidate, said if the officers—several of them LGBTQ themselves—can’t be who they are, he won’t participate either.
"Those police officers wearing their badge, wearing their uniform, wearing their guns is made us so we could have a successful parade and I think it's a little hypocritical now that we say we don't want those very same police officers to wear their uniform," he said.
"The identify who they are in this parade."
Irvin said he still supports and recognizes the LGBTQ+ community and he will make sure all of them, including the police officers, are acknowledged, but apparently it will not be at the parade.
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