NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — Manhattan’s Lunar New Year parade in Chinatown provided space for the city to celebrate the Year of the Dragon on Sunday afternoon, and the streets were flooded with dancing, drums and dragons.
The parade, organized by Better Chinatown USA, began heading down Mott Street toward Chatham Square at 1 p.m. before moving east along East Broadway. Festivities then turned up Forsyth Street before the parade’s conclusion near Grand Street and Sara D. Roosevelt Park.
Asian communities globally rang in the Lunar New Year on Feb. 10, ushering in prosperity and good luck. The symbolic new lunar year cycle ended earlier this week with a full moon, but Manhattan’s festivities still drew hundreds of thousands of onlookers despite cold temperatures.
Bystanders at Sunday’s parade were dressed in bright colors, particularly red, a color representing good luck during the holiday. Others enjoyed cultural foods and reached out to touch passing dragons for good fortune.
Jimmy Ho from Sunnyside, Queens told 1010 WINS/WCBS 880 about the significance of the Year of the Dragon, the fifth animal in the Chinese New Year cycle.
“This means it’s going to be a prosperous new year, dragon is a very powerful animal,” he said.
Prominent officials like Mayor Eric Adams, Senator Chuck Schumer and Gov. Kathy Hochul attended the event that caused road closures and MTA service changes.
“I want to make sure everyone knows how incredibly strong this community is,” Hochul said.