Three people arrested during Boston Pride parade protest

Three people were arrested Saturday during a protest at the Pride for the People parade in Boston, police said, when a protester allegedly threw a water bottle at officers while blocking the parade path.

Liberate Boston Pride held a stationary protest at Boylston and Berkeley streets, where they stood with linked arms on the way to the demonstration, according to a police report on the incident.

Owen Woodcock and Jorma McSwiggan-Hong were both arrested when they did not move when officers asked protesters to leave the parade route, according to Boston police. They both face disorderly conduct charges, police said.

Another protester faces assault and battery with a dangerous weapon – a water bottle. Jake Zawalich allegedly threw a full water bottle and hit one officer in the head and another in the chest.

“Zawalich nodded, acknowledging his actions with a smile,” police wrote. Boston police told Boston.com the officer was not injured.

No other demonstrators in the group of 30 to 50 people were arrested, police said.

Pride for the People, or P4TP, held the parade for the first time in 2023 after three years without a Pride parade in Boston due to the pandemic and inclusion issues. Boston Pride, the previous organization to organize the parade, disbanded in 2021 after criticism that it excluded racial minorities and transgender people.

Last year, P4TP shifted its focus to reduce corporate participation in the parade and festival, organizers told The Associated Press.

Now, Liberate Boston Pride organized Saturday to protest, in part, the sponsorship of P4TP by Delta Airlines, State Street and Fidelity, which they identify as “unethical companies” on their website . The group also wanted him to publicly support Palestine and remove police officers from the parade.

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“A pride committee of any kind cannot be for queer people unless it is for all queer people. As we know, Israeli businesses, police and colonialism have never been just for gays. Although P4TP has a noble mission, it has only succeeded in repeating the mistakes of Boston Pride,” says the letter from Liberate Boston Pride, signed by more than 70 advocacy groups. “This ‘pride’; is not for the people. But it's possible.

Liberate Boston Pride also shared images and videos from the protest, showing what appeared to be dozens of officers lined up on barricades and some separating groups of people. According to the police report, the demonstrators locked arms, “forcing the police to physically distance the individuals who were locked together.”

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P4TP and Liberate Boston Pride were both contacted for comment Sunday evening.

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