Get pinched if you don't wear green?

[Katy]

I got pinched twice one year for not wearing a green coat!  It was cold and I was wearing a green top and jeans under my parka.  I got pinched twice on the way inside in the morning for not wearing green.  The next year I attached a green button to the front of the coat and got pinched again because they couldn't see it from behind me.

 

I was so glad when elementary school was over.

[edelweiss]

Of course! I always made sure to wear something green on St. Patrick's Day to ensure that I didn't get pinched. I definitely saw people get pinched for not wearing green but never saw it as mean or harassment. It was just something fun!

[creekland]

My mom used to do this (wear orange), and when I told a Catholic friend this in college, she became upset almost to tears at the insensitivity of that, and I felt awful as well as embarrassed because I really knew nothing about St Patrick's Day and didn't understand the significance of the orange thing. I have to look it up almost every year to remind myself what it's all about, because for some reason, I always forget.

 

Anyway, it's interesting to read a couple of you say that's typical in your area, because I came away from that college encounter thinking it was something really strange. (The stranger thing is that my mom actually is Catholic, but she didn't grow up that way, so I think it was a vestige from her pre-Catholic upbringing days.)

 

I can't answer for all as I haven't looked into it significantly, but in my area the trend was to wear Green if Catholic and Orange if Protestant.  We all knew there was "bad" history between the two, but as with the Irish flag, we were told by wearing both (as we fit in) we were showing the peace (now) between the two groups.  We had a handful of non-Christian students (Jewish).  I don't recall what they did TBH.  It was never really that big of a deal in my memory - no pinching or similar - just more of a small history or culture recognizing day.

[Reefgazer]

I never heard of that until I was an adult. I grew up in an area that was all Polish and Italian, though, and no one celebrated SPD, so that's probably why I never heard of it until recently.

[TravelingChris]

I remember people being pinched for not wearing green. I also remember a boy wearing orange on that day.  Thinking back on it, I am not sure why he wore orange since he was Scananavin not Northern Irish but I don't remember that he got pinched.  I didn't do any pinching. I didn't like the custom and was very happy to see that in Ireland where I visited on a spring break that included St. Patrick's Day- there was nothing special going on and certainly not the drunked festival that happens in US both with St Patrick's Day and with Cinco de Mayo (which isn't a big holiday in Mexico).    I wouldn't be surprised if the heavy drinkers amongst us didn't approrpiate some other holidays for a drinking frenzy.

[Janeway]

Of course!!! Your husband just is avoiding the pinch. I hope you really gave it to him.

[dirty ethel rackham]

I didn't hear about it until this year.  My mom was South Side Irish (Chicago, that is.)  We spent a fair amount of time with our Irish relatives.  Had lots of Irish Catholic families at our parish in our (not south side) suburban area.  Never heard it.  I knew not to wear orange (one kid did, but his family was Protestant attending a Catholic school.)  We actually got more grief for not wearing red on St. Joseph's Day, but I think that was because the pastor was Italian. 

[ocelotmom]

I have a scar from being pinched on St. Patrick's Day when I was 13 or so.

[Ananda]

I am aware.  My mother was a big fan of the pinching, and she pinched hard.  She also did the birthday spanking thing.  I never forgot my green.  I would have assumed the tradition had died out, but yesterday my eldest (7) had an activity.  He wore a teal shirt (greener than blue). I thought that was adequate, but a bunch of boys said the shirt the blue and apparently pinched him over & over.  He over reacted and it became a big thing.  I think the whole thing is stupid.  I don't begrudge others their holiday.  But others' holidays shouldn't attack me.

[J-rap]

Oh yes, that was a big deal when I was a kid!  Pinches were always gentle though.

 

My kids' generation is very much into wearing green, but they don't seem to be into the pinching as much.

[maize]

Wearing green to avoid pinched I am familiar with.

 

Orange for protestants I have never heard of before.

[flyingiguana]

It was horrible.  And painful.  Probably one of the many reasons we've homeschooled.

 

And to add to the misery, one year we got pinched if we wore green but no orange.  Because wearing green must mean we were Catholic. Good Protestants knew enough to wear orange.  

 

Tried to avoid that by wearing both green and orange.  That didn't work either.  But then, the logic of the whole situation was bizarre.

 

Ironically, looking back, I'm guessing most of the pinchers had no Irish ancestry.  And if they did, they didn't know it.  It was just another excuse to bully.

 

My husband does not understand my fear of St Patrick's Day.