Blake — I think you are spot on in making the connection with the evolution of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in the US. Definitely some solid parallels between the Irish-American community and the gay community. There was a time when Irish immigrants (among others) were branded as “non-white.” The idea of a “white” race itself being a construct invented around the same time. “Whiteness” like “straightness” are concepts born of bigotry — attempts to manufacture and buttress a sense of superiority.

And sadly, yes, the bigots are emboldened today. Agendas of bigotry now dominate US and European politics as right-wingers try to erase all of the social progress of the last century.