PODER AL PUEBLO
ONLY ONE PROBLEM WITH THESE INTERRACIAL ADOPTIONS MAMITA
JUGO WAS IN IRELAND DIG FOR THE PUERTO RICAN DAY PARADE
I~LL MAKE IT CLEAR TO HUH THAT WON~T BE HAPPENING AGAIN
Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company
The New York Times
June 9, 2003, Monday, Late Edition - Final
SECTION: Section B; Page 1; Column 4; Metropolitan Desk
LENGTH: 788 words
HEADLINE: The Day That Fifth Avenue Runs All the Way to San Juan
BYLINE: By ELISSA GOOTMAN
BODY:
There is the Fifth Avenue of Saks Fifth Avenue, of Bergdorf Goodman and Tiffany & Company. And then there is the Fifth Avenue that comes to life during the National Puerto Rican Day parade, arguably the most festive event of the city's parade season, the one that transforms the storied street into a whirl of beauty queens and marching bands, hip-hop and salsa, pride and nostalgia.
This is not generally the sort of parade you just happen by. For New Yorkers with even tenuous ties to Puerto Rico, it is something to set the alarm for, even on an overcast day like yesterday. It is an event that requires preparation.
For Ileana Gonzalez, 16, a junior at Walton High School in the Bronx, the preparations started Friday, when she had her acrylic nails painted like the Puerto Rican flag. [AY MAMITA!!!!!!] They continued Saturday, when she bought this year's parade outfit: a sleeveless blue dress with "Puerto Rico" in red letters. And it continued yesterday, when Ileana left home with her relatives -- "aunts, uncles, everybody" -- at 9 a.m., in time to secure a spot right behind the barricades on the east side of Fifth Avenue near 61st Street.
"This is the highlight of my year," said Ileana, who spent several years of her childhood in Puerto Rico and returns during summers. "To be proud of where you came from, it's the best."
There were marching bands from Puerto Rico and baton-twirlers from the Bronx. There were convertibles showcasing beauty queen after beauty queen, each reigning over a different region of Puerto Rico or group in New York, and each wearing a glittering tiara. There were sororities and fraternities, floats advertising radio stations, and many -- some spectators said too many -- floats bearing the names of big companies: Colgate-Palmolive, Coca-Cola, Pepsi.
Wilson DeJesus, who said he had attended the parade each of his 45 years, said he pined for the days when the parade was marked by more tradition, and less of a corporate presence.
"It seems more promotional, and louder," he said. "Years ago, it was people coming from all around the country, entertaining us with the culture. Now, you don't see too much culture. It's the change of the times."
But stay home? Unthinkable. Mr. DeJesus arrived at 8:30 a.m. with his fiancee, Emily Feliciano, 30, and his three youngest daughters, Jasmine, 13; Stephanie, 10; and Elizabeth, 5.
"I want them to learn more of the culture," he said of the girls. "It's not just the parade, scream your lungs out. It's what's behind it."
Across Fifth Avenue, Cristina and Jolene Noriega, both 20, cousins from the Throgs Neck section of the Bronx, said they had no problem with promotional floats and loud music.
"They had good music, so it wasn't too bad," said Cristina.
"And they were giving out soda and chips," said Jolene.
Angel Ramos, 33, wore a Puerto Rican flag as a cape, and a bandanna decorated like the flag as a headband.
"The weather don't mean nothing to us," he said, speaking for his wife, Katherine Del Gado, and 1 1/2-year-old daughter, Crystal Ramos. "When it's time to party, we party."
A shimmering float passed by, and Mr. Ramos waved two flags in the air.
Aileen Maldonado, 35, came to the parade from the Bronx, with three of her six children. She said she had not planned to come this year, but "I felt sad for my kids. They really wanted to come."
With a flag painted on her cheek and her hair covered in a red, white and blue do-rag, Ms. Maldonado danced as floats passed by. "Last year was more rowdy, a lot of fights," she said. "This year is real nice."
In 2000, the energy on Fifth Avenue was overshadowed by what took place afterward in Central Park, where groups of young men prowled about, groping women, spraying them with water and tearing off their clothes.
Elizabeth Cardona, 20, a La Guardia Community College student from Brooklyn, said she had not been to the parade since then. "It was kind of bad, what happened," she said. "You never know if it's going to happen the next year."
Yesterday, Ms. Cardona was back, with her husband, mother, brothers, cousin and pet, a white Maltese named Bruno who wore a Puerto Rican flag like a cape. Early in the parade, she had only one complaint: there were too many people separating her from the action.
As of last night, a police spokesman said, there had been no major incidents connected with the parade.
Yolanda Rodriguez, 27, from Yonkers, brought her 6-year-old daughter, Cameisha Griffth. Cameisha has not yet been to Puerto Rico, where her mother's mother was born. But from her experience at the parade, she said, she knew what Puerto Rico would be like: "Fun."
"I like the cheerleaders," she said.
http://www.nytimes.com
GRAPHIC: Photos: Rachel Villarina, president of the Hispanic Court Officers Society, pumped up the crowd along the route of the National Puerto Rican Day parade yesterday on Fifth Avenue. At left, members of Aires Mulatos, a folk dance troupe from San German, P.R., doing their routine. At right, dancers from N'Joy taking their turn. (Photographs by James Estrin/The New York Times)(pg. B5); There were marching bands, shimmering floats, baton twirlers and flags -- many, many Puerto Rican flags, of all sizes, and all waved proudly. (James Estrin/The New York Times)(pg. B1)
JUGO WAS IN IRELAND DIG FOR THE PUERTO RICAN DAY PARADE
I~LL MAKE IT CLEAR TO HUH THAT WON~T BE HAPPENING AGAIN
Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company
The New York Times
June 9, 2003, Monday, Late Edition - Final
SECTION: Section B; Page 1; Column 4; Metropolitan Desk
LENGTH: 788 words
HEADLINE: The Day That Fifth Avenue Runs All the Way to San Juan
BYLINE: By ELISSA GOOTMAN
BODY:
There is the Fifth Avenue of Saks Fifth Avenue, of Bergdorf Goodman and Tiffany & Company. And then there is the Fifth Avenue that comes to life during the National Puerto Rican Day parade, arguably the most festive event of the city's parade season, the one that transforms the storied street into a whirl of beauty queens and marching bands, hip-hop and salsa, pride and nostalgia.
This is not generally the sort of parade you just happen by. For New Yorkers with even tenuous ties to Puerto Rico, it is something to set the alarm for, even on an overcast day like yesterday. It is an event that requires preparation.
For Ileana Gonzalez, 16, a junior at Walton High School in the Bronx, the preparations started Friday, when she had her acrylic nails painted like the Puerto Rican flag. [AY MAMITA!!!!!!] They continued Saturday, when she bought this year's parade outfit: a sleeveless blue dress with "Puerto Rico" in red letters. And it continued yesterday, when Ileana left home with her relatives -- "aunts, uncles, everybody" -- at 9 a.m., in time to secure a spot right behind the barricades on the east side of Fifth Avenue near 61st Street.
"This is the highlight of my year," said Ileana, who spent several years of her childhood in Puerto Rico and returns during summers. "To be proud of where you came from, it's the best."
There were marching bands from Puerto Rico and baton-twirlers from the Bronx. There were convertibles showcasing beauty queen after beauty queen, each reigning over a different region of Puerto Rico or group in New York, and each wearing a glittering tiara. There were sororities and fraternities, floats advertising radio stations, and many -- some spectators said too many -- floats bearing the names of big companies: Colgate-Palmolive, Coca-Cola, Pepsi.
Wilson DeJesus, who said he had attended the parade each of his 45 years, said he pined for the days when the parade was marked by more tradition, and less of a corporate presence.
"It seems more promotional, and louder," he said. "Years ago, it was people coming from all around the country, entertaining us with the culture. Now, you don't see too much culture. It's the change of the times."
But stay home? Unthinkable. Mr. DeJesus arrived at 8:30 a.m. with his fiancee, Emily Feliciano, 30, and his three youngest daughters, Jasmine, 13; Stephanie, 10; and Elizabeth, 5.
"I want them to learn more of the culture," he said of the girls. "It's not just the parade, scream your lungs out. It's what's behind it."
Across Fifth Avenue, Cristina and Jolene Noriega, both 20, cousins from the Throgs Neck section of the Bronx, said they had no problem with promotional floats and loud music.
"They had good music, so it wasn't too bad," said Cristina.
"And they were giving out soda and chips," said Jolene.
Angel Ramos, 33, wore a Puerto Rican flag as a cape, and a bandanna decorated like the flag as a headband.
"The weather don't mean nothing to us," he said, speaking for his wife, Katherine Del Gado, and 1 1/2-year-old daughter, Crystal Ramos. "When it's time to party, we party."
A shimmering float passed by, and Mr. Ramos waved two flags in the air.
Aileen Maldonado, 35, came to the parade from the Bronx, with three of her six children. She said she had not planned to come this year, but "I felt sad for my kids. They really wanted to come."
With a flag painted on her cheek and her hair covered in a red, white and blue do-rag, Ms. Maldonado danced as floats passed by. "Last year was more rowdy, a lot of fights," she said. "This year is real nice."
In 2000, the energy on Fifth Avenue was overshadowed by what took place afterward in Central Park, where groups of young men prowled about, groping women, spraying them with water and tearing off their clothes.
Elizabeth Cardona, 20, a La Guardia Community College student from Brooklyn, said she had not been to the parade since then. "It was kind of bad, what happened," she said. "You never know if it's going to happen the next year."
Yesterday, Ms. Cardona was back, with her husband, mother, brothers, cousin and pet, a white Maltese named Bruno who wore a Puerto Rican flag like a cape. Early in the parade, she had only one complaint: there were too many people separating her from the action.
As of last night, a police spokesman said, there had been no major incidents connected with the parade.
Yolanda Rodriguez, 27, from Yonkers, brought her 6-year-old daughter, Cameisha Griffth. Cameisha has not yet been to Puerto Rico, where her mother's mother was born. But from her experience at the parade, she said, she knew what Puerto Rico would be like: "Fun."
"I like the cheerleaders," she said.
http://www.nytimes.com
GRAPHIC: Photos: Rachel Villarina, president of the Hispanic Court Officers Society, pumped up the crowd along the route of the National Puerto Rican Day parade yesterday on Fifth Avenue. At left, members of Aires Mulatos, a folk dance troupe from San German, P.R., doing their routine. At right, dancers from N'Joy taking their turn. (Photographs by James Estrin/The New York Times)(pg. B5); There were marching bands, shimmering floats, baton twirlers and flags -- many, many Puerto Rican flags, of all sizes, and all waved proudly. (James Estrin/The New York Times)(pg. B1)