Carrying the banner: Local 361 iron worker and Brooklynite Robert
Farula carries an American fl ag during the 2012 parade.
Associated Press / Mary Altaffer
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NYC Labor Day Parade
returns to Fifth Avenue
BY CAMILLE SPERRAZZA
Thousands of working
men and women from 150
unions and labor groups
will march in this year’s annual
New York City Labor
Day Parade on Sept. 7.
The grand procession honors
blue-collar American’s laboring
as teachers, fi refi ghters,
nurses, postal workers,
road builders, those in construction,
garment and retail
workers, bakers, taxi drivers,
fl ight attendants, pilots,
bricklayers, carpenters, and
countless other professionals,
who dedicate their lives to
the strength, prosperity, and
well-being of the country.
This year’s parade will be
led by Grand Marshal Elizabeth
Shuler — secretary-treasurer
of the American Federation
of Labor and the highest
ranking woman in the U.S.
Labor movement — and Parade
Chair Ernest Logan —
president of the American
Federation of School Administrators.
“This is such an exciting
time for working people all
across the country who are
joining together and mobilizing
on a scale that I’ve never
seen,” says Shuler. “From
teachers and hotel works, to
video game developers, and
grocery store workers, the
power of the working people
is rising. It will be such an
honor to be in New York City
with workers who lead this
charge, and make lives better
for all working families every
day.”
City and state elected offi -
cials are expected to join the
march, as are New York City
Central Labor Council President
Vincent Alvarez, Secretary
Treasurer Janella T.
Hinds, and the council’s Executive
Board.
The parade will be led
by the Patriot Brass Ensemble,
members of the American
Federation of Musicians
Local 802. The Ensemble is
known to perform for thousands
of veterans in longterm
care facilities, enriching
their lives through music.
The event marks the 125th
anniversary of Labor Day,
and kicks off at Fifth Avenue
and 44th Street in Manhattan,
with marchers heading
uptown to 66th Street. A mass
will be held at 8:30 a.m. at St.
Patrick’s Cathedral, located
at Fifth Avenue and 50th
Street.
And at 10 a.m., bands,
fl oats, fl ag twirlers, dancers,
banners, classic cars, motorcycles
and buses will set out
along Fifth Avenue.
Since its inception in 1882,
the parade has become a signature
event for the labor
movement not only in the city,
but across America.
Alvarez claims that, while
the parade takes on a festive
atmosphere, it’s also an expression
of political will, and
demonstrates the strength
and numbers of organized labor
groups.
“Even though it’s a parade,
it’s a march — it’s a march for
rights,” he said.
One of the messages the
parade’s organizers would
like to demonstrate this year
is that, despite recent attacks
by well-funded anti-worker
forces, New York City is
“Building Worker Power Together.”
The parade shows the
public that there are many
people fi ghting for them.
In the 1800s, participants
marched down Broadway, but
that changed in 1959 when the
parade moved to Fifth Avenue.
A permit for that stretch
is almost impossible to secure
now, but an existing agreement
between the Labor Council
and the city allows the parade
to continue on that route.
Get out there and become
part of this time-honored
New York City tradition!
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