Five people were shot during New York City’s West Indian American Day Parade on Monday, in a shocking incident that has once again marred one of the world’s largest celebrations of Caribbean culture. The shooting occurred around 2:35 p.m. along the parade route in Brooklyn, targeting a specific group of individuals, according to NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell.
The parade, which had started earlier in the day with thousands of participants dancing and marching down Eastern Parkway, was intended to continue into the night. However, the joyous atmosphere was shattered when the gunman opened fire, critically wounding two people and injuring three others. The suspect fled the scene, and the NYPD is now actively searching for clues and seeking video footage from bystanders.
“This was not a random act,” Chief Chell emphasized. “This was an intentional act by one person towards a group of people. There is no active shooter running around Eastern Parkway. The parade is continuing and will go on as planned.”
An Associated Press videographer nearby witnessed at least two of the victims being treated for injuries to their face and arm. The NYPD cordoned off an area adjacent to the parade route, marking the crime scene as officers collected evidence.
Chell urged anyone with video footage of the incident to come forward, stating, “We need that video. We are going to solve this, but it’s going to take a lot of work.”
The violence left many parade-goers shaken. Jalissa Bailey, speaking to the New York Post, expressed her distress: “I’m crying over this, it’s so terrible. How can someone have the heart to fire a gun around so many people — babies, children, the elderly?”
Bailey noted that while the parade has a history of violence, recent years have been relatively peaceful, leading attendees to believe that increased security might have curbed such incidents.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who was marching in the parade at the time of the shooting, completed the route and later expressed his sorrow on social media. “I’m pained and troubled by the horrible shooting that took place as we were marching together at the West Indian Day Festival and Parade in Brooklyn,” Schumer posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Thank you to our 1st responders on the scene. I pray for everyone affected. We must keep working to end gun violence in America.”
The West Indian American Day Parade, now in its 57th year, is an annual Labor Day event that transforms Eastern Parkway into a vibrant display of Caribbean culture, with participants donning feather-covered costumes and waving colourful flags. The parade draws massive crowds along its nearly 2-mile route, which runs from Crown Heights to the Brooklyn Museum.
Despite its celebratory nature, the parade has been marred by violence in the past. In 2016, two people were killed and several others injured near the parade route. A year earlier, Carey Gabay, an aide to then-Governor Andrew Cuomo, was fatally shot in the head during pre-parade festivities.
The origins of the parade date back nearly a century, beginning as a pre-Lent Carnival celebration started by a Trinidadian immigrant in Manhattan. It was later moved to its current time in the 1940s. Brooklyn, home to a large Caribbean community, began hosting the parade in the 1960s, and it has since become the culmination of several days of carnival events, including a steel pan band competition and J’Ouvert, a street party commemorating freedom from slavery.
