For a mile-long stretch of Bushwick, Brooklyn, a sea of red, white and blue floods the streets. One corner boasts a DIY speaker setup blasting old-school reggaeton courtesy of Tego Calderón and Plan B, another plays throwback salsa from Héctor Lavoe and El Gran Combo. Booming horns pulse through the air; vendors pour “piragua” snow cones and serve watermelon and coconut ice cream to those looking to cool down; and elders kick back in personal lawn chairs taking in the festivities, which include surprise appearances from Mayor Zohran Mamdani and New York Knicks star (and newly crowned NBA champion) Jose Alvarado.
Puerto Rican Culture on Display
The Bushwick event coincides with a long-running parade that has seen Puerto Rican New Yorkers (or “Nuyoricans”) take to Manhattan’s streets every second Sunday in June since 1958. Now attracting millions of participants and spectators, it is a communal ritual that has become deeply embedded in the city’s Puerto Rican communities.
Originally held in Spanish Harlem, the main parade migrated to its current route down Midtown’s Fifth Avenue in its second year. Today, however, celebrations stretch across the city, with dance parties, festivals and community activities taking place across the Lower East Side, Brooklyn’s Sunset Park and Bushwick.
“There’re more Puerto Ricans in the US than there are on the island right now. Now that I’ve been here in the city for 13 years, there’s a lot of longing to be back home,” says Monica Santos Gil, the founder of New York-based handbag brand Santos by Monica and a passionate festival-goer. “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.”
A Celebration of Heritage
It’s a sentiment shared by Edwin Reyes, a Bronx-based fashion designer. “Growing up in New York, my form of the Puerto Rican diaspora is very different from others’,” Reyes 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. It’s a yearly reminder that says, ‘OK these are my people.’”
Puerto Rican iconography has become an essential part of Nuyorican fashion. For each year’s celebrations, Reyes’ namesake label designs a look that embraces symbols stemming from the island, like 2025’s statement-making, red, white and blue ruffled organza maxi skirt. This year’s design is a soft, baby blue gown — paying homage to the color of the island’s original 1895 flag— embroidered with subtle motifs, including yellow taxi cabs, the Brooklyn bridge and the Puerto Rico’s national flower, the flor de maga.
Original reporting: KTVZ (Central Oregon) — read the source article.
