Status: 07/07/2021 9:57 p.m.
In spring 2020, New York was considered the corona epicenter of the USA – up to 800 people died every day at that time. In the meantime, the metropolis has the pandemic pretty much under control – and honored its heroes with a parade.
By Carsten Schabosky,
ARD Studio New York.
When New York celebrates, it does it right. This time it was about New York’s heroines and heroes. “It was their job to take care of us. And that’s exactly what they did. Everyone has to see that.” Many see it like this young woman, including New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. “This parade has a very special spirit. It’s about celebrating normal New Yorkers. They really did something very heroic. It’s time to celebrate the heroes of our city,” said the Blasio.
It’s about the people who saved the city during the corona pandemic, de Blasio continued. That means rescue workers, nurses, employees in medical practices, subway drivers or salespeople in supermarkets. Or teachers who had a tough job during the Corona period.
Euphoric mood
Patricia also claps for New York’s heroes. She sums it up like this: “The best we can do is to say ‘thank you’. Whether doctors or people in the greengrocer – they worked. We were at home!”
With the parade, New Yorkers thank the people who did important work in the pandemic.
Image: REUTERS
Sandra works for a parcel delivery company. She is one of those who was celebrated. She says, “That was really the highlight of my professional life, it was December 14th: We got the first vaccines. That was so great. I thought this is the way to get New York back on track. And we were allowed to be there ”
The worst is over
Hardly any other US metropolis has suffered as much from Corona as New York. At the height of the epidemic, a field hospital was set up in Central Park, among other places. The situation has now eased.
Andrew Cuomo is the governor of New York State. He is also pleased that New York is now doing better than other regions in the USA: “What New York has achieved is extraordinary! We were worst off and are now at the forefront.”
“We are not over the mountain yet”
Almost 300 groups attended the parade. It was led by Sandra Lindsay in a heat of about 35 degrees. She works as a nurse in the New York borough of Queens and was the first person in the United States to be vaccinated against Corona last September. She warns: “Sure, we’re much better off than we were a year ago. But we’re not completely over the top yet“But at least: In the state of New York there is now a vaccination rate of 70 percent.
The tradition of the so-called confetti parades has been around since 1886. It was created when the Statue of Liberty was opened. There have been similar parades for Albert Einstein and John F. Kennedy, for example.
Confetti for the heroes of the pandemic: Ticker-Tape-Parade in Manhattan
Carsten Schabosky, ARD New York, 7/7/2021 9:24 p.m.