According to 4WWL, Dan Kelly, the president of Endymion, said, “The Krewe of Endymion has received significant feedback about our grand marshall announcement…Some of this commentary included threats that cause us great concern.” The organization did not specify what the threats were or provide more details about the feedback. The krewe further stated, “In the best interest of the safety of our riders, special guests and everyone that welcomes us on the streets, Mel Gibson will not ride as a Co-Grand Marshal for our 2023 parade.” The decision not to have Gibson serve as Co-Grand Marshal of the upcoming parade comes less than 24 hours after the initial announcement of his involvement. After he was named the Co-Grand Marshal and then dropped, the ADL (Anti-Defamation League), the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans, the Greater New Orleans Clergy Council, and the Jewish Community Relations Council released a statement about the situation. It said, “Mel Gibson has a long history of making antisemitic, racist and misogynistic slurs…Given his history of fueling antisemitism and other forms of hate, we find his choice as Grand Marshal of Endymion was completely insulting and shortsighted.” The statement continued, “Although we are relieved he is no longer riding, we hope the Endymion leadership will take the opportunity to learn why the selection of Mel Gibson caused such pain and disappointment to the Jewish community as well as the marginalized communities he has harmed in the past.” Kelly told Nola.com of the initial decision to pick Gibson as Co-Grand Marshal, saying, “Our inclusion of Mr. Gibson was meant to be in recognition of his acting career and was in no way meant to give credence to his statements otherwise. We regret this incident and will do better in the future.” A representative for Gibson told People that he does not have any comment.
