Delray Beach, Florida Cancels St. Patrick's Day Parade and Pride Event Citing State DEI Law

The city of Delray Beach, Florida, announced this week that it is canceling its St. Patrick's Day parade and its annual Pride celebration for 2027, saying a new state anti-DEI law bars it from organizing, funding or promoting them. Florida Senate Bill 1134, which Gov. Ron DeSantis signed and which takes effect Jan. 1, restricts municipal funding, promotion and official actions involving activities defined in the law as diversity, equity and inclusion. In a statement, the city said that after reviewing the legislation it concluded it is legally prohibited from running the events, though the law does not stop private entities from sponsoring them or similar events. The parade is about 60 years old. After residents objected, Mayor Tom Carney, a Republican of Irish descent, said on Facebook on Wednesday that the city is working with multiple entities to keep the 2027 parade on schedule. He said the parade is deeply tied to the community and that he had read residents' posts and emails. He did not explain how the parade would be saved.

Left-leaning outlets The New Republic and NBC News both lead with the parade's cancellation as a consequence of the anti-DEI law. The New Republic frames it as an accidental result for Republicans who it says aimed at racial minorities and LGBTQ programs, and quotes a resident asking whether the Christmas parade would be next. NBC News highlights DeSantis's role, the parade's 60-year history and Carney's party and heritage, and quotes his statement that the city is working feverishly to save the event. Both quote the city's legal-prohibition statement and note the private-sponsor exception. The Hill, in the alternative group, offers only a brief excerpt, crediting the decision to legislation championed by DeSantis and focusing on the ban on local DEI funding, without residents' reactions. Right-leaning outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while left-leaning and alternative outlets had, focusing on the law's effect and the mayor's response.