As the State of Israel celebrated its 52nd anniversary of the reunification of the holy city of Jerusalem, its eternal capital, Jews and supporters of the Jewish State in New York marched in solidarity down Fifth Avenue on Sunday in the 55th annual Celebrate Israel Day Parade.
Great turnout at the in ! I’m honored to be marching today with so many members and residents of this great city! pic.twitter.com/JBzjz7T0nM
— Chief Rodney Harrison (@NYPDChiefPatrol)
This year the theme of the parade was “Only in Israel” with some 250 organizations, Jewish day schools, yeshivot, synagogues, professional marching bands and even commercial companies marching together with 30 floats and trucks to entertain the tens of thousands of people who lined the avenue to cheer on the 40,000 marchers.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, and Israel Consul General to New York Danny Dayan were among the notables who joined the marchers, along with every elected official who made it a point to show up and make sure parade-goers knew they were there to express their support for Israel.
The far-left New Israel Fund, however, was not among the marchers.
“It is very exciting to march here in New York with tens of thousands of people and to celebrate Israel’s independence and support,” Dayan told interviewer Baruch Shem Tov. “In these complex times, when anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism raise their heads, it is important the show the strong relationship between Israel and the U.S. in general, and between Israel and American Jews in particular.”