‘Why did they wait?’ NC Veterans Day Parade canceled after Raleigh bans motorized vehicles.
The North Carolina Veterans Day Parade set for Saturday in downtown Raleigh has been canceled after the city said it could not have motorized vehicles.
Raleigh issued a parade permit to the Wake County Council of Veterans, the parade organizers, before telling them they could not use vehicles.
“Upon further review this week, city staff recognized the size of the vehicle caravan planned through downtown created a risk to public safety,” according to statement the city issued Wednesday morning. “We spoke with the veterans group about other options. They have since canceled the parade and will continue with the ceremony at the Capitol at 11 a.m.”
Wake County has more than 50,000 veterans, the largest veteran population in the state.
‘Why did they wait’
Organizers began working with the city in early August, said Terry Chatfield, one of the parade organizers.
“So you see August, September, things were looking good,” he said. “October. Things were looking good.”
Then he got a call Tuesday morning from city staff asking how many vehicles were planned for the parade.
About 115 vehicles, he said, but registration didn’t end until Thursday.
The city called back, asking how many marchers would be in the parade.
About 700, mostly in high school bands and JROTC groups, he said.
The city called a third time, shortly before 5 p.m., to say no motorized vehicles would be allowed in the parade.
“My disappointment in all this is why did they wait until three days before?” said Richard Spyrison, president of the Wake County Council of Veterans.
“If they had given us two, three, four weeks on this, we would have been able to change something. To adapt. That’s what we do in the military. We adapt to the situation,” he said. “But giving us three days was too much to work with. We couldn’t do it.”
There are too many veterans who would be unable to walk the mile-and-a-half parade route, he said.
“We sincerely apologize to the veterans who gather each year for this significant honor of their service and sacrifice,” according to the city’s statement. “The city continues to prioritize safety of our residents while being mindful of pending legislation. We will continue our evaluation of these events and monitor the landscape, and we expect that parades will look different in the future.”
Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin referred questions to city staff.
2022 Christmas parade death
The city has already banned motorized vehicles from this year’s Christmas parade after 11-year-old Hailey Brooks died after being struck by a truck pulling a float in last year’s parade.
The city originally decided to not have a Christmas parade but backtracked a day later saying it could go on without motorized vehicles.
Hailey’s father, Trey Brooks, criticized the city and the mayor for referencing their family in the city’s statement to originally cancel the parade.
“Don’t make excuses,” he told the City Council last month. “Aim higher. Do better. This is the capital city. And please don’t blame our family for canceling the Christmas parade. You had 11 months to ensure this wonderful Raleigh tradition can go on with basic safety measures in place. You have done nothing so far. But it’s not too late, particularly when our children’s well being is at stake.”
The Brooks family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the driver of the vehicle, the dance company she was in, the parade float provider and the parade organizers. The city was not listed as part of the lawsuit.
The city has issued permits for other parades with motorized vehicles this year including the Raleigh St. Patrick’s Day and, as recently as two weeks ago the Broughton High School Homecoming parade. Photos from that parade show students dancing in the back of pick-up trucks and on floats, and students sitting on the trunk of convertibles with their legs inside the backseat.
Veterans Day Ceremony still on
It would have been a logistical nightmare to try to continue with the parade, Chatfield said.
“We have people who are really elderly,” he said. “I mean I’m no spring chicken myself.”
Chatfield and Spyrison both hope people will still attend the 11 a.m. ceremony on the north side of the Capitol building in downtown.
The keynote speaker is retired Maj. Gen. William Kirkland, and other speakers will include N.C. Department of Military and Veterans Affairs Secretary Walter Gaskin. Several Wake County commissioners are set to attend, Spyrison said.
“We’ve not heard back from any of the people from the city of Raleigh,” he said. “The mayor or the City Council. We always invite them. But we haven’t heard back from them.”
