The Puerto Rican Day Parade weekend in New York City is a communal ritual that has become deeply embedded in the city’s Puerto Rican communities. For a mile-long stretch of Bushwick, Brooklyn, a sea of red, white and blue floods the streets, with music, food, and festivities.

Puerto Rican Culture on Display

The parade, which has been held every second Sunday in June since 1958, is a celebration of Puerto Rican culture and heritage. It features traditional music, dance, and food, as well as a display of Puerto Rican fashion, which is a unique blend of island and urban styles.

According to Monica Santos Gil, the founder of New York-based handbag brand Santos by Monica, the parade is an opportunity for Puerto Ricans to come together and celebrate their connection to the island. ‘For those who maybe feel less connected to the culture of the island, the parade is such an incredible opportunity for Puerto Ricans to come together, celebrate that connection and feel close to home,’ she says.

Edwin Reyes, a Bronx-based fashion designer, also shares this sentiment. ‘Growing up in New York, my form of the Puerto Rican diaspora is very different from others’,’ he says. ‘Because I have the culture of being Puerto Rican, but also New York culture, going to the Puerto Rican parade is such an incredible moment of bringing those two landscapes together.’

Original reporting: KRDO (Colorado Springs metro) — read the source article.