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Parades’ end
Three big Brooklyn events
cancelled amid pandemic
Mayor Bill de Blasio cancelled non-essential events
in June because of the coronavirus outbreak, shutting
down the annual Mermaid Parade.
Noach Dear dies of COVID-19
Brooklyn judge, 66, was also a former city councilman
By Aidan Graham
Brooklyn Paper
Brooklyn Supreme Court
Justice Noach Dear, the
66-year-old former Borough
Park Councilman, died on
April 19 from coronavirusrelated
complications.
First elected to Kings
County’s civil court in 2008,
Dear was elevated to the Supreme
Court in 2010 — where
he developed a reputation for
his fierce defense against harassment
from debt collectors,
and his advocacy for racial
justice in policing policies.
Prior to his time on the
bench, Dear had served in
the City Council from 1983
until he was barred from seeking
reelection by term-limits
in 2001.
NEW YORKERS:
Following his death, politicians
and politicos from
around the five boroughs took
to social media to share their
tributes to the one-man “political
institution.”
“Noach Dear was unforgettable.
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in New York City. When you go out for essential needs, work or to get fresh air, keep distance
between yourself and others and take the following precautions.
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Bill de Blasio
Mayor
Oxiris Barbot, MD
Commissioner
PROTECT YOURSELF
AND OTHERS
• Keep at least 6 feet between
yourself and others.
• Wash your hands with soap
and water often.
• Cover your nose and mouth
with a tissue or sleeve when
sneezing or coughing.
• Do not touch your face with
unwashed hands.
• Monitor your health more
closely than usual for cold or
flu symptoms.
IF YOU ARE SICK
• Stay home.
• If you have a cough,
shortness of breath, fever,
sore throat and do not feel
better after 3-4 days,
consult with your doctor.
• If you need help getting
medical care, call 311.
• NYC will provide care
regardless of immigration
status or ability to pay.
REDUCE
OVERCROWDING
• Stay home.
• Telecommute if possible.
If you do go out:
• Stagger work hours away
from peak travel times.
• Walk or bike.
• Do not gather in crowds.
PROTECT THE
MOST VULNERABLE
• Stay home if you have
lung disease, heart disease,
diabetes, cancer or a
weakened immune system.
• Stay home and call, video
chat or text with family or
friends who have one of
these conditions.
He had a fighting spirit
and always put his constituents
first,” said Mayor Bill de
Blasio. “On behalf of his city, I
offer our deepest condolences
to his family, friends and the
people of Midwood, Borough
Park and Bensonhurst who he
so dutifully served.”
Kalman Yeger, who now
holds the council seat that
Dear formerly occupied, reflected
on the “numbing news”
of Dear’s passing and his years
of public service.
“Awful, numbing news. The
passing of my predecessor Justice
Noach Dear is impossible
to digest,” said Yeger. “Compassionate,
funny, pragmatic,
always patient & loved people.
His lifelong public service
touched many thousands.”
Rudy Giuliani — the former
New York City mayor and
current Donald Trump confidant
— praised Dear’s legacy
as a sincere civil servant on behalf
of his constituents.
“I am very saddened personally
and for our City,” said
Giuliani. “His commitment
to his community and to the
State of Israel was second to
none. As a Democrat in the
City Council, he was able to
put politics aside and support
me when he thought I
was right.”
Judge Dear’s coronavirusrelated
passing comes amid accusations
that the state failed
to halt court operations early
enough to prevent the spread
of the novel virus.
Noach Dear
File Photo
By Rose Adams
Brooklyn Paper
The Pride Parade, the
Puerto Rican Day Parade, the
Mermaid Parade, and all other
non-essential events in June
will be cancelled to stem the
spread of COVID-19, Mayor
Bill de Blasio announced on
April 20.
“These kind of community
events, we love them,
but they’re not what we need
right now. They’re not essential,”
de Blasio said in his daily
coronavirus briefing on April
2º. “The bottom line is about
safety.”
The mayor’s order calls off
many of the borough’s largest
events, including the 24th annual
Brooklyn Pride Parade,
Sunset Park’s Puerto Rican
Day Parade, and the Mermaid
Parade in Coney Island, which
would have celebrated its 38th
year this June.
Manhattan’s Dyke March,
Puerto Rican Day Parade,
and Pride March — now in
its 50th year — will also be
cancelled.
The announcement comes
three days after de Blasio cancelled
all permit applications
for events in May, cancelling
the Brooklyn Half, among
other events.
The community events
may be rescheduled, although
it’s not yet clear when
large gatherings will be able
to safely proceed, de Blasio
clarified.
“We’ll work closely with
them to find a time and place
to do what they do each year,”
he said.
Dick Zigun, the director of
the non-profit arts organization
Coney Island USA who
organizes the Mermaid Parade
every year, said that he
hopes to reschedule the parade
for later this summer.
“There will be some version
of the Mermaid Parade,
ideally a real parade in the
street later this summer. If
not, then maybe a virtual on-
line parade,” he said.
Regardless of the parade’s
fate, Zigun will still offer merchandise
for the postponed
event and plans to announce
the event’s newest King Neptune
and Queen Mermaid
soon.
“I hope you’re all Broadway
fans!” he said, hinting.
Meanwhile, the organizer
of Sunset Park’s Puerto Rican
Day Parade said that he hopes
to replace the festive celebration
with an event that honors
the lives that have been lost
during the pandemic.
“If we do something, it
won’t be a Puerto Rican Day
Parade,” said Dennis Flores,
who runs the grassroots organization
El Grito. “I think that
it would be appropriate for the
community to come together
and make some space for people
that have died.”
Bret Lehne
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