Good News: Bristol Fourth of July Committee Reverses Lifetime Ban on Tea Party!

A victory for common sense.  This updates our previous coverage HERE.

Bristol parade committee apologizes to R.I. Tea Party
Thursday, July 16, 2009
By Donita Naylor
Journal Staff Writer – Projo.com

The chairman of the Bristol Fourth of July Committee has issued a formal apology to the Rhode Island Tea Party, which the organization’s treasurer has accepted — with some disclaimers.

Fourth of July Committee Chairman David Burns issued a statement Tuesday saying he “would like to clear up any misunderstanding” regarding the Tea Party float, saying the committee “regrets and apologizes for any miscommunication” to the group and “assures them that they are not banned from future parades.”

Tea Party treasurer Marina Peterson had said on July 8 that Float Committee Chairman Jim Tavares told her “not to waste the stamp” on an application to appear again in the Bristol parade.

Burns said Wednesday that the float committee chairman “did not and does not have the authority to ban floats from the parade in future years.”

Sympathizers running alongside the Tea Party float handed out copies of the U.S. Constitution. Peterson has said they were not from her group.

Peterson said Wednesday she was asked to meet on Tuesday with Parade Chairwoman Judith Squires. She was surprised, she said, that Burns and a lawyer were also there. Tavares wasn’t.

She issued a statement Wednesday saying she “is pleased to read that the Bristol Parade Committee has reversed its position and rescinded its ‘ban for life.’

“While we would have preferred less ambiguity on their part, we accept their statement as an apology to everyone who participated in preparing for the RI Tea Party’s parade debut,” she said. “We appreciate the committee’s acknowledgment of what we have been saying all along; we play by the rules.”

She said her group “looks forward to being invited back to participate in future Bristol 4th of July Parades to represent the freedom-loving people of Rhode Island and the principles upon which our nation was founded.”

In his apology, Burns said: “It has not been determined that materials were distributed from the Rhode Island Tea Party float.”

He said parade participation is by invitation. “If a particular organization violates policy, the committee would investigate the violation,” Burns said. “The Fourth of July Committee will investigate all of the organizations that may have distributed materials along the route this year and provide such organizations with an opportunity to present their side of the story to the committee before taking any further action.”

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