DV Journal

Did Philadelphia TV try to censor a joke mocking D.A. Larry Krasner during their coverage of the Mummers Parade?

The Mummers strutted their stuff down Broad Street Sunday in an annual local New Year’s tradition. It was a welcome sight — even if it came a day late — after last year’s parade was canceled by the pandemic.

But eagle-eyed viewers noticed that Channel 17, which broadcasts the parade, cut away from the Finnegan New Year’s Brigade to a random shot of the city skyline. And it happened just as the brigade was lambasting Krasner as part of its “Finnopoly” skit. Finnegan’s Captain Mike Inemer says he believes the cameraman was just being cautious about filming the signs the group displayed, making fun of Krasner’s soft-on-crime policies.

Mummer Michael Inemer portrays Mayor Kenney. (Click here to see video)

“It was when we flipped up the signs,” he said. “They thought it was something bad. But they were funny.”

Representatives of PHL17 declined to respond to a request for comment.

The humorous skit was based on the ever-popular Monopoly board game. And with the record high crime rate in Philadelphia, the group displayed “Get out of Jail Free” cards from the game, along with various humorous sayings.

While many in the crowd found the skit hilarious, others say crime is no laughing matter. There were a record 562 homicides in the city in 2021.

The parody also appeared relevant, given Democratic Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon, who represents South Philadelphia, was carjacked at gunpoint on a city street a few days before Christmas.

Inemer, who grew up in southwest Philadelphia, has been a Mummer since he was a teenager. Today his sons, Michael Jr., 32, and Jimmy, 31, also march, along with many other family members. His wife, Christine, helps behind the scenes with makeup and costumes.

The brigade is named for the Finnegan playground in southwest Philly, said Inemer, who now lives in Folsom in Delaware County. Inemer works at the Philadelphia Stock Exchange and said the brigade includes people from all walks of life, including doctors, lawyers, police officers, and even a Secret Service agent.

All skits were approved by Philadelphia city officials in October. They usually get their ideas from events in the news, Inemer said, hence the idea of Krasner and Kenney and the city’s crime crisis.

A first this year, all the Mummers had to undergo diversity and sensitivity training so they would not offend various minority groups. They were given written guidance and watched a video, Inemer said.

“It’s the way of the times,” Inemer said, noting most workplaces now have similar programs in place.

But Inemer and the Finnegan Brigade are no strangers to controversy. In the 2019 parade, the brigade was accused of having a performer in blackface play rap artist Jay-Z. But it turned out the critics were wrong. The person portraying Jay-Z was African American.

And in 2016, the Finnegan Brigade faced complaints about the perception of homophobia and transphobia for a skit about Caitlyn Jenner, including a critical tweet from Mayor Kenney.

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While politics may divide us, nearly everyone agrees welcoming the New Year with good food, friends, and family is what la dolce vita is all about.

The Delaware Valley Journal asked some of the numerous candidates running for Pennsylvania governor and the U.S. Senate what their New Year’s traditions are and whether they are making a resolution for 2022.

Several politicians said they typically eat the Pennsylvania Dutch meal of pork and sauerkraut on New Year’s Day, which is supposed to bring diners good luck in the coming year.

Carla Sands, a Republican vying for her party’s nod for the Senate, said, “My favorite New Year’s tradition was my grandmother would make pork and sauerkraut and we would all sit down to a big New Year’s dinner. That’s how my family in central Pennsylvania did it.”

“My 2022 New Year’s resolution is to flip the U.S. Senate by electing an America First conservative in Pennsylvania,” Sands added.

Montgomery County Commissioner Joe Gale, who is running for governor, said his family enjoys the same traditional Pennsylvania dishes.

“The Gale family’s New Year’s Day tradition is having a pork and sauerkraut dinner,” said Gale. “My resolution for 2022 is to become the next Republican governor of Pennsylvania, so I can cut the pork in Harrisburg.”

Charlie Gerow, a Harrisburg-based political consultant also running for governor, said, “I’m pretty boring. I’m generally in bed before midnight and set the alarm so I can see the ball drop.”

On New Year’s Day, he will “eat some pork and sauerkraut with my mom and watch the Penn State football game and probably a couple of others, too. I’m not one for New Year’s resolutions but I pray daily for strength to help others, for humility to keep me straight, and to honor God in all I do.”

Former congressman Lou Barletta, who is leading in the polls in a field of more than a dozen vying to be the Republican candidate for governor, said, “Lately, my wife Mary Grace and I have been spending New Year’s Eve quietly at home, and I might enjoy a glass of wine and a cigar. Some of my best memories are of our First Night family-oriented celebrations, which we started in Hazleton while I was mayor. In 2022, I’ll continue to travel to every corner of the commonwealth, planning to restore common sense to Pennsylvania government.”

Will Simons, a campaign spokesman for Attorney General Josh Shapiro, the only Democratic candidate running for governor so far, said, “Josh likes to celebrate New Year’s with his family, and this year his resolution is to spend as much time with his family as he can while continuing to do everything in his power to make Pennsylvanians’ lives better.”

Guy Ciarrocchi, who is on leave from his job as CEO for the Chester County Chamber of Business & Industry, has also joined the fray as a Republican in the race for governor.

“My wife and I honor the age-old tradition of many parents: We sleep through the ‘ball-drop’ while ‘Dick Clark’s Rocking New Year’s Eve’ plays on TV,” he said.

Ciarrocchi has two resolutions: “One, to never stop thanking my wife, Chris, for supporting my run for governor and taking care of our home and family; and, two, as Chamber CEO in 2020, I vowed not to stop fighting until everyone was back at work and every child was back in school—now, I’ve taken that mission on as a candidate.”

Dr. Kevin Baumlin, a Philadelphia Democrat who is running for the Senate, said he usually works in the emergency department at Pennsylvania Hospital on New Year’s Eve but is not working this year. However, “with COVID, maybe we’ll just stay home, make a baked Alaska.” On New Year’s Day, Baumlin and his husband traditionally make a large pot of chili and have friends over.

As for his resolution, it’s to “win the Senate race.”

Pennsylvania Senate Pro Tempore Jake Corman, a Republican candidate for governor, said, “New Year’s Eve is always about spending time with good friends. Being surrounded by friends is a really great way to end one year and begin another.”

For others, it’s a time for prayer.

“As a child, growing up in a region (Cameroon) where nutritional insecurities from unpredictable climatic changes, locust invasions, and resultant famine were not infrequent occurrences, on New Year’s Day our family would pray, sing and wish for greater rainfall, robust fertility of the soil and bountiful crop yields. This tradition has persisted over the years,” said Dr. Nche Zama, a cardiothoracic surgeon who lives in the Poconos and is a Republican running for governor.

“My New Year wish is for greater social harmony in our beloved state, nation, and world, and an understanding by everyone that we are all woven together in a single garment of destiny,” said Zama. “What affects one affects all.”

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