Flags, elaborate outfits and colorful bandanas were visible from blocks away from the Eastern Parkway. The aroma of mouth-watering ox tail, roti, and curried goat lingered in the air. The thumping of Soca and Dancehall music made it no surprise that West Indians were back in Brooklyn for another exciting Labor Day celebration. Police officers swamped the streets, attempting to monitor the flow of pedestrian traffic, which has proven a difficult task in past years.
As carnival time signifies liberation and emancipation of our people, Caribbean nationals exhibited this in dress. Costumed dancers adorned in glitter, beads, and feathers wined down the street, showing not a care in the world for the opinions of others. People of all ages, shapes and sizes celebrated in merriment, dancing wildly behind the trucks representing various organizations and troupes. Some attendees even danced down the Parkway covered in paint from the early morning J’ouvert celebration.
Many look forward to Labor Day in Brooklyn for great music and authentic West Indian cuisine, while others anticipate purchasing CDs, flags and jewelry from the hundreds of street vendors. Crowds of people gathered on the sidewalks and in the streets to greet and revel with the passing trucks, floats, and mas troupes. As one of the biggest cultural events in New York City, the West Indian Day Parade has drawn masses of Caribbean people together year after year. Each year, the parade is held on the Eastern Parkway in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn. The parade route, from Utica Avenue to Grand Army Plaza, showcases the parade of bands, colorful masquerades, and street fair.
With elections approaching, politicians utilized this year’s celebration to push their campaigns. Mayor Michael Bloomberg and United States Senator Chuck Schumer, waved to parade attendees as they strolled down the Parkway. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, a New-York born, Jamaican-American, was the Grand Marshall for the festival.
Although the essence and pride of the parade has not changed, with an apparent increase in police attendance, the event has lost much of its reputation and the general attendance has dwindled. As the West Indian carnival culture closely indentifies with independence and contentment, many people complain about the increased security, which seems to limit the revelers in the street and freedom of movement on the Parkway. In addition to the tightening of safety measures it seems that there weren’t as many trucks and as much representation of the various islands as in previous years.
Overall, theparade has developed over time, starting with thousands of participants and growing to an estimated 3.5 million people (http://www.wiadca.com/) The event has been of extreme economical benefit to New York City with the influx of tourists from all over the world. According to census estimates, more than 600,000 New York residents are of West Indian origin.in attendance since the mid - 1990's according to then Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Often compared to the numerous carnival celebrations across the Caribbean as well as festivals in Boston, Miami, and Toronto, the New York Labor Day Parade has become one of the premier places to be for the Carnival season.
For more information on the annual West Indian-American Day Carnival visit: http://www.wiadca.com/
