With the impending general elections in November, a virtual Who’s Who in New York politics made their presence felt during Monday’s massive West Indian-American Day Carnival Parade on Brooklyn’s Eastern Parkway.
Gov. Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams, as well as mayoral candidates Zohran Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo, and Curtis Sliwa marched along the 3 ½ -mile-long route.
Most also participated in the Pre-Labor Day Breakfast at the Lincoln Terrace Court on Buffalo Avenue at the beginning of the parade.
Several other legislators marched in the parade, and attended, as well as spoke at, the breakfast ceremony.
They included US Rep. Yvette D. Clarke; New York Attorney General Letitia James; Public Advocate Jumaane Williams; Manhattan and the Bronx Borough Presidents Mark Levine and Vanessa L. Gibson, respectively; and Assembly Members Rodneyse Bichotte-Hermelyn and Monique Chandler-Waterman.
Hochul told the breakfast ceremony that she was “so proud to be the governor of a state with the largest Caribbean population outside that beautiful part of our world.
“Let me tell you this, my friends — we are so focused on lifting the people of our communities up, and I know in light of what has been happening under the new administration in Washington, there’s a lot of fear and anxiety,” Hochul added. “I’m here to tell you that today we’ll celebrate, tomorrow we’ll get back up and fight like hell and say you’re not going to separate our families, our children.
She added: “We’re going to continue to embrace the incredible culture and the customs and the cuisine of the Caribbean, and I’m going to continue focusing on creating trade relationships, sending more teams from Empire State Development to the islands to help give them catalysts of dollars and resources to be successful,” she continued.
“We have to focus on people in these communities, making sure we have money to help with more money back into your pockets and high quality healthcare as we reimagine SUNY Downstate (Hospital),” the governor said. “You fired up for that as well? A billion dollars to give people the healthcare they deserve. So, I’ll see you out there — same time next year and the year after and the year after. But thank you for making me so proud to be your governor.”
Clarke, the daughter of Jamaican immigrants, who represents the 9th Congressional District in Brooklyn, said that while it was “a wonderful occasion to socialize, we’re coming together under bad circumstances.
“We have a government that does not dignify our community,” said Clarke, who chairs the Congressional Black Caucus. “We have people who are concerned about extreme wealth and right-wing supremacy. Because of our Africanness, we’re targeted. This is an administration that does not recognize our humanity.
“They’re blind to the fact that, despite the obstacles, we’ve survived,” she added. “We’ve got to do some education to our babies. We have to make sure they’re fully rooted in our culture. We’re here with a purpose, and it’s a God-given purpose. I’ll take all of us.
“With Donald Trump, he has dismantled the federal government as we know it, with Black women bearing the brunt,” Clarke continued. “So, let’s get ready. I didn’t come just to bacchanal. Use your influence, encourage your people in this moment.
Hermelyn, who represents the 42nd Assembly District in Brooklyn and is the daughter of Haitian immigrants, presented a citation to carnival organizers, the Brooklyn-based West Indian-American Day Carnival Association (WIADCA), on behalf of her Assembly colleagues.
“As immigrants, people are trying to tear us apart,” Hermelyn said before presenting the citation.
“We want to make sure we’re not going anywhere,” added Hermelyn, who chairs the Brooklyn Democratic Party. “We have to make sure we have voices that are going to represent us.”
After Adams, who spoke briefly, disclosing that no shooting was recorded overnight, Williams, the son of Grenadian immigrants, remarked: “You missed an applause moment. Last night was a safe night.
“We’re getting ready to mash up the Parkway,” he added. “I appreciate all Caribbean people.”
Gibson, whose father hailed from Trinidad and Tobago, said she was “proud to represent the Caribbean Diaspora.
“As a proud Caribbean, I’m representing Brooklyn, the Bronx,” she said. “This afternoon, we get to celebrate our culture.
“Whether you represent Brooklyn, Manhattan, the Bronx, we’re one,” Gibson added.
