AOH Press Release

Press Release

 

The Stamford Division of the Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) has asked the organizers of the Stamford St. Patrick’s Day Parade to withdraw its invitation to State Senator Andrew McDonald to march in this Saturday’s parade.  In the event that the Senator McDonald chooses to march, the AOH will step aside from their traditional place in the front of the parade in a silent and dignified protest of Raised Bill 1098, which was drafted and introduced by the Judiciary Committee under Senator McDonald’s direction as its Co-Chair.  Raised Bill 1098 would force a radical reorganization of the legal, financial, and administrative structure of all Catholic parishes in the state, and is contrary to the Apostolic nature of the Catholic Church as well as the Constitution of the United States. 

 

The AOH is a Catholic, Irish-American fraternal organization founded on May 4, 1836, in New York City in order to protect the Catholic Clergy and Church property from anti-catholic mobs.  The Stamford Division of the AOH was chartered in 1891, and is one of the city’s oldest civic groups.  The AOH remains active today seeking to support and defend the Roman Catholic Church and its mission.

 

St. Patrick is the patron Saint of Ireland, and for centuries the Irish have celebrated St. Patrick’s Day on March 17^th, the anniversary of his death in the fifth century.   The Stamford St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee was founded by Hibernians and is operated as a separate legal entity, which is comprised of Hibernian and non-Hibernian members.  As a result of the Parade Committee’s hard work and dedication, the St. Patrick’s Day parade has become a beloved annual tradition in Stamford.  The Stamford AOH traditionally steps off at the head of the parade, followed by the invited elected officials and numerous pipe and marching bands. 

 

Senator McDonald is the Co-Chair of the Connecticut Judiciary Committee, and under his direction the Judiciary Committee drafted Raised Bill 1098.  As the Co-Chair, he sets the Judiciary Committee’s agenda.  Because 1098 is a Raised Bill it was not proposed by any legislator, but was rather drafted and then introduced by the Judiciary Committee itself.  Raised Bill 1098 is entitled “An Act Modifying the Corporation Laws of Certain Religious Corporations.”  The title of the Raised Bill is intentionally vague, because the only religious corporation it concerns is the Roman Catholic Church.  It singles out the Catholic Church and imposed burdens on the Church beyond those placed on any other religious denomination.  The proposed law would mandate that all Parishes would be run by boards, whose voting members would be exclusively lay-persons, from which Pastors and the Bishop would be effectively excluded. 

 

While Senator McDonald has issued a public apology for his role in introducing Raised Bill 1098, this anti-Catholic legislation is not an isolated incidence.  In 2007 Senator McDonald introduced Senate Bill 685, which was designed to force the four Catholic hospitals in Connecticut to issue the abortifacient drug, also known as the “morning after pill.”  Despite the strong opposition from the Connecticut Catholic Conference the bill became law with Senator McDonald’s strong support.

 

It is no coincidence that the Judiciary Committee drafted this proposed legislation that targets the Catholic Church, which has been vocal and steadfast in its opposition to the political views adopted by Senator Andrew McDonald and Representative Michael Lawler, the Co-Chairs of the Committee, who are proponents of abortion rights, gay marriage, and the destruction of embryos as part of stem cell research.

 

The Stamford AOH is aware of the public reports of threats against Senator McDonald, and denounces and condemns all such threats directed against Senator McDonald, which also constitute a threat to the public discourse that is essential to our American form of self-governance.

 

Given the role that Senator McDonald played as Co Chair of the committee that drafted and introduced Raised Bill 1098, the Stamford AOH will step off the St. Patrick’s Day parade route parade route in protest of his participation.