| Revision as of 04:08, 1 March 2007 editFergus Mixolydian (talk | contribs)94 editsNo edit summary← Previous edit | Revision as of 04:10, 1 March 2007 edit undoFergus Mixolydian (talk | contribs)94 editsNo edit summaryNext edit → | ||
| Line 9: | Line 9: | ||
| The first Puerto Rican Day parade was held on Sunday, April 12, 1958 in ], replacing the former Hispanic Day Parade. In 1995, the parade became incorporated as The National Puerto Rican Day Parade and expanded beyond the parade itself. The National Puerto Rican Day parade now hosts over 7 major events throught New York City. There are dozens of other events that also take place the weekend of the parade that are not sponsored by the National Parade corporation. In addition to the main New York Parade there are currently over 50 smaller parades that take place across the United States. | The first Puerto Rican Day parade was held on Sunday, April 12, 1958 in ], replacing the former Hispanic Day Parade. In 1995, the parade became incorporated as The National Puerto Rican Day Parade and expanded beyond the parade itself. The National Puerto Rican Day parade now hosts over 7 major events throught New York City. There are dozens of other events that also take place the weekend of the parade that are not sponsored by the National Parade corporation. In addition to the main New York Parade there are currently over 50 smaller parades that take place across the United States. | ||
| The parade attracts many New York politicians, including mayor ]. In recent years, the parade has honored several |
The parade attracts many New York politicians, including mayor ]. In recent years, the parade has honored several celebrities by naming them "International Grand Marshal" of the parade; this has been awarded to ]{{Fact|date=February 2007}}, ] and ], who are all of Puerto Rican ancestry. {{ref|abc1}} | ||
| ===Incidents=== | ===Incidents=== | ||
Revision as of 04:10, 1 March 2007
This article is about the NYC parade. For the Seinfeld episode, see The Puerto Rican Day.
The Puerto Rican Day Parade (also known as the National Puerto Rican Day Parade) is a nationally televised parade that takes place yearly on Fifth Avenue in New York City. The parade, which is always held on the second Sunday in June honors the nearly 4 million Puerto Ricans on the island itself, as well as the Puerto Ricans and those of Puerto Rican heritage on the U.S. Mainland. In 2006 over 80,000 people marched and more than 2 million lined the parade route. The parade is always attended by many celebrities, both Puerto Rican and of Puerto Rican heritage, and all major New York politicians. Many Hip-Hop artists frequently perform at the parade, even if they are not of Puerto Rican heritage. P-Diddy, Busta Rhymes, Little Jon, Pit Bull, Sean Paul, Beenie Man, Fat Joe, Ja-Rule, Jim Jones and a host of others have performed at the parade in recent years.
The parade marches along Fifth Avenue from 44th Street to 86th Street and has grown to to become the largest parade and the second largest event in New York City. With close to 3 million spectators annually it is one of the largest parades in the country and is only surpassed by the West Indian-American Day Carnival and Parade which is held on Labor Day in Brooklyn, New York. This parade is not celebrated in Puerto Rico, nor are there any Puerto Rican Heritage events in Puerto Rico.
History
The first Puerto Rican Day parade was held on Sunday, April 12, 1958 in Manhattan, replacing the former Hispanic Day Parade. In 1995, the parade became incorporated as The National Puerto Rican Day Parade and expanded beyond the parade itself. The National Puerto Rican Day parade now hosts over 7 major events throught New York City. There are dozens of other events that also take place the weekend of the parade that are not sponsored by the National Parade corporation. In addition to the main New York Parade there are currently over 50 smaller parades that take place across the United States.
The parade attracts many New York politicians, including mayor Michael Bloomberg. In recent years, the parade has honored several celebrities by naming them "International Grand Marshal" of the parade; this has been awarded to Big Pun, Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony, who are all of Puerto Rican ancestry.
Incidents
In 2000, the parades were marred by numerous incidents of sexual assault and violence. Roughly 50 women reported being doused with water, stripped and groped by roving packs of drunken men in New York's Central Park. Using an amateur handheld video of one such event, police arrested 18 men, who all eventually pled guilty or were convicted. Several of the victims sued the city itself, claiming that the police force did not do enough to crack down on public drunkenness during the parade, and even alleged that police officers saw the roving packs and did nothing about them. An official police inquiry later found that two officers on duty had disregarded complaining victims, and five superior officers had failed to properly deploy their officers.
In recent years, possibly in reaction to the violent actions witnessed in past parades, many residents and shopkeepers in Manhattan's Upper East Side have taken to erecting temporary fences around their property and boarding up their windows. Several prominent members of the Latin American community, as well as Mayor Bloomberg himself have denounced this practice as racist, although many residence owners maintain that it is simply because of the volume of traffic generated by the parade.
In 2005, over 120 members of the Latin Kings gang were arrested with weapons at the parade. While breaking up a brawl about a block away from the end of the parade route, a police officer on duty was stabbed, but not fatally.
References
- Another man arrested in connection with Central Park attacks from CNN on June 18, 2000.
- Wolf Howls As NBC Yanks "Law & Order" Episode accessed from E! Online on January 26, 2001.
- Plywood Up, Fifth Avenue Awaits a Parade from New York Times on June 8, 2003.
- Parade marred by knifing, 175 busts from New York Daily News on June 13, 2005.
- Woman Settles Suit Against NYC Over Sexual Abuse at 2000 Puerto Rican Day Parade from New York Lawyer on March 16, 2006.
- Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony Add Hollywood Glamor to New York City's Puerto Rican Day Parade from ABC News on June 11, 2006