BEVERLY, Mass. – The Horribles Parade in an affluent area north of Boston is supposed to poke fun and feature all things politically incorrect. But a float that spoofed the spike in teen pregnancies in a nearby city was too much for three parade judges.
The annual Fourth of July Horribles parade in Beverly Farms included a float with dancing girls with pillows stuffed under their shirts.
That offended Carolyn Kirk, mayor of Gloucester, a working class city 30 miles north of Boston that made headlines last month when a high school principal told Time magazine that some of the 17 students who became pregnant this school year had made a pact to do so.
Kirk and other school officials have denied the existence of a pact.
Kirk said she won't waste her time seeking an apology from Beverly Farms, but said: "It basically triggers a class war between this well-to-do enclave and a working-class city."
Three parade judges were so offended they walked off.
"I get it, it's a Horribles Parade, but it was overkill with the Gloucester pregnancies," said judge Gail Townsend, who said she won't be a judge again after being involved with the parade for about 40 years.
Beverly Mayor William Scanlon Jr. refused to get involved because the parade in the Beverly Farms part of town was not a city-sponsored event. "It's a horrible story," he said.
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