Organizers of a Pennsylvania Halloween parade are apologizing for allowing a float depicting Vice President Kamala Harris tied to the back of a golf cart carrying someone dressed as former President Donald Trump.
Photos of the float in the Oct. 30 Mount Pleasant parade shared by the Westmoreland County Democratic Party show someone dressed as Trump standing on a vehicle surrounded by people dressed as Secret Service agents, including a sniper.
A person dressed as Harris is tied at the wrists to the back of the cart, photos show.
The Mount Pleasant Volunteer Fire Department, which said it has sponsored the parade "for over 70 years," issued a statement Oct. 31 apologizing for "allowing the offensive participants to take part" in the event, according to a Facebook post from the group.
"We have traditionally only provided safety & traffic control," the department said. "We will be reviewing our planning processes to prevent a situation like this from happening again."
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"We certainly don't condone the simulation of political imprisonment or violence in any context, no matter the party affiliation of those involved," Westmoreland County Republican Committee Chair Bill Bretz told WPXI.
"The borough had no part in that parade," Mount Pleasant Mayor Diane Bailey told WESA. "We were as shocked by it as anyone else," she said.
Michelle Milan McFall, chair of the Westmoreland County Democratic Party, said parade organizers "failed the basic test of leadership."
McFall said permitting the display was "not only irresponsible but also a dangerous violation of the social contract that leaders have with their community.
"Parades and public events should bring people together, fostering unity, fun, and a sense of safety. When we allow violent imagery and offensive depictions, we undermine the very fabric of our community and embolden dangerous sentiments," she said.
"This appalling portrayal goes beyond the realm of Halloween satire or free expression; it is a harmful symbol that evokes a painful history of violence, oppression, and racism that Black and Brown communities have long endured here in America," Daylon A. Davis, president of the NAACP's Pittsburgh branch, said in a statement posted to Facebook.
Mount Pleasant is about a 40-mile drive southeast from Pittsburgh.