Thousands of New Yorkers danced along Sixth Avenue Sunday for the annual National Dominican Day Parade.
Dozens of floats booming with Latin music echoed throughout Midtown on Aug. 10, as thousands waved Dominican flags in celebration of their culture and community from 36th Street and Sixth Avenue to 55th Street. The roar of the crowd amplified as each float and marching participant walked by, underscoring the parade’s theme, “Quisqueya & USA: United by Culture and Tradition.”
This year, the parade organizers chose seven-time Major League Baseball star Nelson Cruz to be the grand marshal, deeming him someone who represents all of the contributions Dominicans bring to New York City and his work with his nonprofit, the Broomstick23 Foundation, which aims to improve health and education in the Dominican Republic.
Elected officials lauded the Dominican community for its vast contributions to New York City and emphasized that it makes the fabric of the Big Apple so much richer.
Gov. Kathy Hochul kicked off the parade, announcing strides are continuing to be made with the $12 million for the Dominican Cultural Center in Northern Manhattan.
“I am so proud to be here once again as your Governor kicking off this parade; The 43rd celebration of all that is magnificent and fun about the Dominican community, over a million strong right here in New York City,” Hochul said.
“Proud to be here with you today, but also one strong message: Here in New York, we love our immigrant community, Dominican communities that came here to work make our lives more vibrant. Share their culture and food, and we reject the efforts to remove them, these hard-working individuals, from their homes and their business at schools, and we’ll stand up in solidarity with them as we go forward to make sure the law-abiding individuals feel that and know that this is their home,” Hochul added.
