OTTAWA 鈥� St. Patrick鈥檚 Day celebrations are set to return this week, but festival organizers and student unions say people should party with caution.聽
sa国际传媒鈥檚 largest celebrations of the holiday were cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of pandemic-related health risks. Vaccine and masking mandates are slowly being lifted across the country and many parades and festivals are going ahead, with Montreal鈥檚 event leading the charge in rejuvenating festivities.
Vancouver and Montreal are home to some of sa国际传媒鈥檚 largest Irish populations, and with COVID-19 protocols being lifted in many jurisdictions, festival organizers are confident that celebrations of St. Patrick鈥檚 Day can return to an adjusted normal.聽
The United Irish Societies of Montreal will have 500 people participating in their parade and thousands of spectators are expected to gather on the streets, according to Kevin Tracey, the group's vice-president of public relations.聽
The organization puts together sa国际传媒鈥檚 largest St. Patrick鈥檚 Day parade, but had to cancel it for two years in a row because of the pandemic.聽
This time, people might choose to not wear a mask because it鈥檚 the first time in two years they haven鈥檛 had any restrictions, Tracey said.聽
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 going to happen just because it鈥檚 the first event that鈥檚 open. We were the first ones cancelled and we鈥檙e the first ones back,鈥� he said.
But the return of the Irish holiday doesn鈥檛 come without risks, even though many provinces have lifted vaccination mandates for public gatherings. Ontario is set to drop its masking requirement on March 21, shortly after St. Patrick鈥檚 Day on Thursday, while Quebec dropped its vaccination requirement earlier this week.聽
Ottawa police are worried that students 鈥� some of the most enthusiastic partygoers 鈥� are going to celebrate without masks like they did during last year鈥檚 annual party following a university football match known as the Panda Game. The party violated some COVID-19 protocols, said community police officer Sebastien Lemay.聽
鈥淲e鈥檝e all been there. We鈥檝e all been students wanting to have a good time,鈥� Lemay said. 聽
Still, some student organizations are requesting their peers to wear masks and gather only in small groups.聽
鈥淚t鈥檚 students鈥� own decision whether they want to follow COVID-19 protocols or not. Unfortunately, there鈥檚 nothing we can do to stop them,鈥� said Callie Ogden, vice-president of community engagement at the Carleton University Students鈥� Association.
The student group is working with the police to encourage students to follow COVID-19 protocols while celebrating, even if that means cutting back on the extravagance of St. Patrick鈥檚 Day festivities, said Ogden.聽
Ottawa police have also warned they will have a greater presence during the festivities downtown. It's been less than a month since police drove crowds protesting COVID-19 restrictions out of Ottawa's core, following weeks of disruptions to residents and local businesses.
Police have already started talking to local residents to reassure them officers will be monitoring for any law breaking and general misconduct.聽
At Okanagan College in British Columbia, a large-scale celebration isn鈥檛 a priority. The Okanagan College Students鈥� Union has already hosted two events this month and some have noticed that students are forgetting to wear masks or wearing them improperly.聽
鈥淚 think there is just a lot of fatigue in general over COVID and it still being going on two years later,鈥� said Kristina Laitinen, who is the co-ordinator of member services at the student union.
Despite that, everybody is 鈥渇airly co-operative鈥� at in-person events and they respect the needs of vulnerable people, she said.聽
While event organizers like the student union are confident that people will make the choice to follow COVID-19 protocols, they are incorporating these protocols into the events out of habit after two years of restrictions. 聽
sa国际传媒 lifted its mask mandate for indoor public spaces last week, while vaccination mandates for businesses, events and services will be removed next month.
Montreal鈥檚 parade has been assigned a longer route than usual so that people will be spread out, said Tracey. The parade鈥檚 participants will also all be required to wear masks but spectators have the choice to not wear one.聽
On the other hand, CelticFest Vancouver isn鈥檛 making masking, vaccination or social distancing mandatory.聽
The festival is sa国际传媒鈥檚 second-largest celebration of St. Patrick鈥檚 Day and caters to all age groups. Even so, students and seniors are crucial to the success of the festival, which is expecting a crowd of up to 5,000 attendees, said Alan Cosgrave, vice-chair of the board at CelticFest.聽
The event is going to be held outdoors, but all indoor activities will still follow provincial health guidelines, Cosgrave said.聽
鈥淲e鈥檙e pretty nervous going into this year, honestly, especially with the various variants,鈥� he said.聽
The staff at the festival will be putting up health and sanitization booths, where attendees can choose to pick up masks and sanitize their hands.聽
And while festival organizers in Vancouver and Montreal are emphasizing autonomy when it comes to masking, one thing is certain: they don't plan on cancelling any more festivities.聽
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 15, 2022.
鈥斺赌斺赌�
This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, which is funding a project by Carleton University's School of Journalism and The Canadian Press.
Lahari Nanda, The Canadian Press
