A pageant queen says she was banned from Staten Island’s St.Patrick Day parade hours after she came out as bisexual during the weekend.
According to CBS News, Madison L’Insalata came out as bisexual and said the parade’s organizers banned her from participating in the parade. Before Sunday’s parade, organizer Larry Cummings called the director of Miss Staten Island Scholarship Pageants Jim Smith to inform him of the committee’s decision.
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‘I was stunned by the whole thing. I wasn’t prepared. He just said we’re worried about her safety like he’s doing us a favor,”
She said she had to watch the parade from the sidelines and wore a rainbow scarf with a pride button.
“I am proud of Staten Island and I am proud of the title that I have because I know that myself and all the other girls involved do a lot of really great things for our community. So it’s a shame that this really great community event, we ended up not being allowed to be a part of.”
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The committee recently received criticism for banning the Pride Center of Staten Island from participating in the parade.
“I knew that people would talk about it, and that’s all I wanted. Because the more people that know about it, the more likely it is to change,”
L’Insalata added that her shocking appearance at the parade as caused some positive feedback and hopes it will teach inclusivity and diversity.