Puerto Rican Day Parade

The Puerto Rican Day Parade (also known as the National Puerto Rican Day Parade) takes place every year in the United States along 5th Avenue in New York City. It started in 1958 and is held on the second Sunday in June. The parade celebrates the 3.2 million people who live in Puerto Rico and all people of Puerto Rican birth or heritage living in the U.S. mainland.

Many famous people, both from Puerto Rico and with Puerto Rican roots, join the parade, along with politicians from the Tri-State area. It is special because it is the only parade celebrating Latino heritage that happens on famous 5th Avenue, and it is the oldest and longest-running Latino heritage parade in New York City.

The parade moves along 5th Avenue from 44th Street to 86th Street. By 2007, it had become one of the biggest parades in the United States, with almost four million people watching each year. While New York City hosts the largest Puerto Rican parade, other cities with many Puerto Ricans, such as Philadelphia, Chicago, and Boston, also hold their own parades and festivals.

History

The first Puerto Rican Day Parade was held on April 13, 1958, in New York City. It replaced an older event called the Hispanic Day Parade. This change helped celebrate Puerto Rican culture more clearly.

Each year, many important people from New York, like mayors and governors, join the parade. Famous Puerto Rican singers and actors are also honored guests. The parade includes many events and activities, making it a big celebration for everyone.

In popular culture

The parade has appeared in some TV shows and books. In a Seinfeld episode called "The Puerto Rican Day", the characters get stuck in traffic because of the parade. The episode had some problems and wasn’t shown again for a while.

The parade was also shown in an episode of Law & Order, which caused some upset, so the TV company apologized. A book called Empire of Dreams even used the parade in its story. The parade was also mentioned on the show Impractical Jokers, where the actors made jokes about it.

Controversies

In June 2010, a choice made by the parade organizers caused some people to be upset. They had selected an actor, Osvaldo Ríos, who had faced serious problems in the past involving a former partner. Because of this, many important people and companies decided not to take part in the parade. After talking with his family and a member of Congress, Nydia Velasquez, Ríos decided not to attend. Another famous singer, Marc Anthony, joined the parade instead.

In 2011, there was some confusion about the ancestry of actor John Leguizamo. He had always said he was Puerto Rican through his father, but his father later said he was actually from Colombia. Leguizamo then said his grandfather was from Puerto Rico. Even with this change, Leguizamo was still allowed to take part in the parade.

The 2015 parade celebrated the 50th anniversary of the death of Pedro Albizu Campos, a person who worked hard for Puerto Rico’s independence.

In 2017, the parade organizers chose to honor Oscar López Rivera. Some people thought he was a hero, while others disagreed strongly. Because of this, several big companies and groups decided not to support the parade. Even so, the parade went on as planned on June 12, 2017, and the mayor of New York City, Bill de Blasio, was there to greet everyone.

Security

After the parade on June 11, 2000, some women were treated badly by groups of young men near Central Park. This led to many people being arrested. In later years, some dangerous groups were also seen at the event. It's important for everyone to stay safe and follow the rules during big gatherings like this.