JetBlue has announced ity has pulled out as a major corporate sponsor of New York’s Puerto Rican Day Parade next month due to growing controversy over this year’s theme.
The June 11 parade plans to honor Oscar Lopez Rivera, who was pardoned by the Obama administration in January after serving 36 years in prison for terrorist offences.
Lopez Rivera was one of the leaders of the FALN nationalist group which was responsible for a string of deadly US bombings in the 1970s and 1980s.
The airline has moved to distance itself from this year’s event as politicians urged a boycott of the Parade’s sponsors.
"It became clear that the debate about this year’s parade was dividing the community and overshadowing the celebration of Puerto Rican culture that we had set out to support," JetBlue said in a release.
"Out of respect for the many different points of view, we will be redirecting our funds to support scholarships for Puerto Rican students in both New York and Puerto Rico. We did not make this decision lightly and hope all sides will come together to engage in a dialogue about the parade’s role in unifying the community at a time when Puerto Rico needs it most."
Rivera, now 74, served 34 years in prison before the pardon.
New York City has a large Puerto Rican population of about 700,000 and New York based JetBlue touts itself as the prominent carrier linking the US mainland with Puerto Rico.
