More than 10,000 join Guyana Diamond Jubilee parade and concert in Brooklyn
Organisers said the June 7 independence celebration drew Guyanese of all generations, with Jumo Primo closing the Unity Concert.
NEW YORK, United States. More than 10,000 people attended Guyana’s Diamond Jubilee Independence Parade and Unity Concert in Brooklyn on Sunday, June 7, the Guyana Independence Celebration Committee New York said on Wednesday, June 17.
“This celebration was historic,” said committee chairman Rickford Burke. “It attracted over 10,000 participants as an epic, awesome display of Guyanese love and patriotic fervor.”
He said younger Guyanese joined older generations in a parade that took Church Avenue by storm, with the crowd growing to between 10,000 and 15,000 as it entered Linden Boulevard. Powered by five music trucks playing Guyanese and other soca music, it ended at the concert venue on Foster Avenue in Canarsie.
Politicians on stage
New York-based vocalist Dr Cherryann Hislop opened the Unity Concert with the Star-Spangled Banner, and Lisa Punch sang the Guyanese national anthem.
Congresswoman Yvette Clarke served as a grand marshal. City Council members Chris Banks and Mercedes Narcisse and State Assembly members Monique Chandler-Waterman and Jamie Williams brought greetings.
Congressional Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said he was proud to represent Guyanese Americans in “Region Eleven” and that he and Ms Clarke, as representatives of the largest Guyanese community in the US, would continue to fight for the rights of Guyanese in the US and in Guyana.
Soca finale
The AYAM Entertainment Group showcased Guyana’s ethnic groups, and drummers brought the theme “Feel the Riddim of the Nation @ 60” to life with folk songs. Reggae, dancehall and a line-up of DJs followed.
In the soca segment, Trinidad Killa performed his collaboration with Nicki Minaj, followed by Brandon Harding, Guyana’s two-time Soca Monarch. The encore belonged to Jumo Primo, the seven-time Guyana Soca Monarch and former lead singer of Byron Lee and the Dragonaires.
Mr Burke said the NYPD reported the event was incident free. “Our Guyanese, especially our young people, over 10,000 strong, showed up and represented Guyana and our Guyanese culture with unprecedented pride,” he said.
