Every January 6, the East Harlem community celebrates the Three Kings parade, but unfortunately not everyone can make it.
That is why Assemblyman Eddie Gibbs proposed legislation so that the date is recognized as a holiday and children do not have to go to school.
Gibbs says that the celebration is already part of that community, so he did not hesitate to submit the initiative to the state congress.
The Catholic tradition is celebrated in all Latin American countries where 50 percent of the area’s residents come from.
Patrick Charpenel, director of the Museo del Barrio which has been holding the parade for 46 years, says it’s about time this happened.
“I am convinced that this would be a recognition of the Latino community and at the same time enriches the perspectives of the other cultures of New York City.” Charpenel indicated.
Nayeli Tellez, a proud Latina mother, assured that this would be a wonderful opportunity to share the tradition.
“My daughter has classmates from South Africa, she has classmates from India, so I would love for this culture to be shared with other countries as well.”
For their part, there are other parents like Víctor Balbuena who oppose the average.
“They have too many days off during the year and I think that now they have fallen far behind in classes,” said Balbuena.
Given the rejection of some, Gibbs agreed on the importance of children attending class but endorsed the importance of honoring cultural heritage.
If this law is approved, the holiday will only be celebrated in cities with more than one million people and New York City is the only one in the state that meets the requirement.
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