{"id":354829,"date":"2026-03-19T19:19:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T19:19:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/354829\/"},"modified":"2026-03-19T19:19:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T19:19:07","slug":"st-patricks-day-float-referencing-epstein-files-draws-condemnation-in-ireland-ireland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/354829\/","title":{"rendered":"St Patrick\u2019s Day float referencing Epstein files draws condemnation in Ireland | Ireland"},"content":{"rendered":"

Rape crisis charities in Ireland<\/a> have condemned a St Patrick\u2019s Day<\/a> float that mimicked a sexual assault and featured signs saying \u201cEpstein files\u201d.<\/p>\n

Rape Crisis Ireland<\/a> called the display \u201can act of public grooming\u201d that normalised sexual violence, while politicians labelled it a disgrace.<\/p>\n

The trailer, pulled by a tractor, featured people in wigs pursuing a female character who screamed and was pinned down on a mattress. There were also Irish flags and bunting, a makeshift cage and a sign saying \u201cPrince Andrew goin to jail\u201d. One of the signs misspelt the name of the late child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein<\/a> as \u201cEpstien\u201d.<\/p>\n

The float joined several parades in the west of Ireland on Tuesday, when the republic celebrated its patron saint. It passed through Headford in County Galway and Kilmaine, Shrule and Ballinrobe in County Mayo.<\/p>\n

Organisers later apologised and said they had not known in advance about the float, which they said was offensive. After noticing the display, organisers in Ballinrobe abandoned a planned second lap of the town.<\/p>\n

Cl\u00edona Saidl\u00e9ar, the executive director of Rape Crisis Ireland<\/a>, said it was shocking that anybody would re-enact incidents of sexual violence against women as entertainment. \u201cThis is an appalling failure of judgment that reflects the persistent minimisation of sexual violence and a misogynistic culture that facilitates it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre<\/a> said the display sent a harmful message to wider society that sexual violence was something to mock.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe float is further evidence of a lack of awareness of the impact of sexual violence and of the harm and trauma it causes,\u201d said its chief executive, Rachel Morrogh. \u201cParading acts of sexual violence through our main streets and turning rape and assault into a joke trivialises and stigmatises the experiences of victims and survivors.\u201d<\/p>\n

Many victims of sexual violence did not report it because they feared they would not be believed or taken seriously, said Morrogh, adding: \u201cThis float and the message it sends reinforces those concerns.\u201d<\/p>\n

Local councillors echoed the condemnation. The Ballinrobe St Patrick\u2019s Day parade committee said the float did not reflect its values. \u201cFloats arrive on the day and often reflect topical themes,\u201d it said. \u201cThere is no entry, registration or vetting process due to the informal, community-led nature of the event.\u201d<\/p>\n

The committee said it would review procedures to ensure future celebrations were respectful, inclusive and family-friendly.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rape crisis charities in Ireland have condemned a St Patrick\u2019s Day float that mimicked a sexual assault and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":354830,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[42,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":["post-354829","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/354829","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=354829"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/354829\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/354830"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=354829"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=354829"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=354829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}