We should hold Christmas parade and honor Hailey: A marching-band columnist’s opinion

I am an unapologetic band nerd, a trombone player since third grade, and I regularly parade around Raleigh wearing a garish plaid vest, six strings of Mardi Gras beads and a captain’s hat decorated with the logo of my beloved clan — The Oakwood Second Line.

Every November, we pile in the back of an antique Ford pickup and honk our way through Raleigh’s Christmas Parade, rolling down Fayetteville Street, banging out “Silver Bells” in a blizzard of candy canes. It is glorious fun.

Then this year, it got canceled. And a day later, the city reversed itself and offered a no-motor-vehicles compromise after what I’m sure involved 24 hours of hand-wringing.

It took awhile, but Raleigh did the right thing in its own wishy-washy way. Let me explain why.

The news to cancel made sense at first.

I was just around the corner on that horrible day last year, a few blocks behind when a parade truck lost control and struck 11-year-old Hailey Brooks, fatally wounding her in front of a crowd on Hillsborough Street. She was a dancer with CC & Co. Dance Complex, and the 20-year-old parade driver still faces a felony charge.

At the parade that day, we waited, and waited, and waited until the news made its way back to our band. In a daze, I put my trombone back in its case, pulled out my reporter’s notepad and started making calls — still dressed for a yuletide party.

Conflicted feelings at first

So now, 10 months later, this is about the time when we dust off the holiday sheet music and start working out if we’re going to play “Joy to the World” twice or three times. Should we sing “The Grinch” this year? Should we try to work up “Feliz Navidad?” Looming in these conversations, right in the foreground, is the anniversary of a child’s death.

So for me, Raleigh’s decision to deny the annual parade permit to the Greater Raleigh Merchants Association seemed both solemn and respectful. It was, maybe, too soon.

But I didn’t feel that way for long. One big thing changed my mind:

Nobody from the city asked Hailey Brooks’ family how they felt. Not one phone call.

If somebody had, they’d have heard this from the young dancer’s family:

“The Brooks family would have urged the city to proceed with the parade after implementing basic, common-sense safety protocols that should have been in place in 2022,” read a statement from the family’s attorney, Jason A. Miller.

I’ve added the emphasis on the word “urged.” Such an urging would have been important to hear. Instead, the city issued its own unsigned statement:

“The decision was made out of an abundance of caution for parade participants and spectators, as well as respect for Hailey Brooks’ family and friends.”

I don’t sense much respect for anybody’s family or friends here. I sense a roomful of lawyers.

I’m probably being harsh. I’m just one little trombone player with an opinion.

But here’s the thing: Raleigh has adopted some new safety requirements since last Christmas, including proof that parade vehicles are registered and insured. Then the Greater Merchants Association added its own set: every driver must be 21, ride with a 21-year-old passenger and demonstrate that the vehicle has passed inspection — including brake checks.

‘Shine Like Hailey Parade Safety Bill’

Meanwhile, the city seems to be waiting on the General Assembly, where the “Shine Like Hailey Parade Safety Bill” has passed the House but not the Senate. That bill would up the age requirement to 25 and require inspections in the past seven days in cities with a population higher than 35,000.

Calling themselves “disappointed,” the Brooks family called on Raleigh to adopt the measures in Hailey’s safety bill, adding they should have been present in 2022.

I’ll throw out this comparison while I’m taking potshots. You may remember Waukesha, Wisconsin, saw its 2021 Christmas Parade attacked by a shooter who killed six people and is now serving six life sentences. The next year, the city posted police along the route, added security barriers and held the parade as scheduled — including a memorial float, according to ABC 7 in Chicago.

One of the elderly victims belonged to a troupe called Dancing Grannies, who proudly performed in tribute.

“My mom would’ve wanted us to be here, and I’m, we’re doing this in remembrance of her,” said Ginny Sorenson’s son Marshall, flanked by his family. “We wouldn’t have missed. Not on anything.”

Here’s another thing that rankled a bit.

Back in March, we in the Oakwood Second Line happily joined in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, which may be smaller than Raleigh’s Christmas celebration but still involves dancers and musicians who practice for months, moving through downtown streets in large numbers while crowds cheer from folding chairs on the sidewalk.

We had documentation showing our truck’s brake overhaul, along with insurance papers and the driver’s license. We couldn’t find anybody who wanted to look at them, even after asking around.

After Hailey’s death, her parents filed a wrongful death suit against the Greater Raleigh Merchant’s Association, Shop Local Raleigh, Glass, CC & Co. Dance Company and D&L Floats.

I hope they find both justice and peace.

But I don’t see how canceling Raleigh’s Christmas parade against their wishes achieved any of that. I hate to guess at motives, not being in the room for these discussions. But I will anyway.

So offering this alternative parade, even in this watered-down form, took some guts from somebody in the room. It’s not easy to back away from a poor decision, especially when you’ve got to announce your flip-flop in public.

So I offer a muffled huzzah.

As a parade regular, I know we can offer our music, our dancing and our hearts in the same place they got stopped up and broken last year.

This story was originally published September 15, 2023 at 12:04 PM.

Josh Shaffer

The News & Observer

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Josh Shaffer is a general assignment reporter on the watch for “talkers,” which are stories you might discuss around a water cooler. He has worked for The News & Observer since 2004 and writes a column about unusual people and places.