On Saturday, July 22, the Waterbury Puerto Rican Day Festival was held at Washington Park after a 24 year hiatus from the city. The Hispanic Coalition was a proud sponsor of the festival which had a very large attendance from the Greater Waterbury community, the state of CT, and out of state too. In addition to the Hispanic Coalition promoting our variety of services, there were other community vendors, shops, and Hispanic food vendors too.
Below is a excerpt from the Waterbury Observer reflecting on the history of the Puerto Rican Parade and Festival in Waterbury and summarizes why we proudly support the return of the parade and festival.
“Waterbury’s first Puerto Rican Day Parade & Festival took place in 1969, Samuel Tirado Sr, of Guanica, Puerto Rico, and resident of Waterbury, was chosen by a representative committee to organize and stage the Connecticut Puerto Rican Day Parade and have it in the Brass City.
Later that year, Mr. Tirado Grand Marshaled the first Puerto Rican Day Parade in Waterbury. The idea was to have the annual parade hosted in distinct cities around Connecticut each year. Since then, multiple cities in Connecticut such as Hartford, Meriden, Bridgeport, New Haven, New Britain and Waterbury have had the opportunity to host their own individual Puerto Rican Day Parade/Festival every year.
The second and last time Waterbury had a Puerto Rican Day Parade was in 1999 when again the statewide Parade was to be held in the Brass City. Local firefighter Alex Calderon, who was the 1999 local parade coordinator, says that the 35th annual statewide parade was one of the best. He claims that this parade had more than 50,000 spectators and people participating in the parade from around the state.
After the 1999 Connecticut Puerto Rican Day Parade/Festival cancellation, Waterbury Puerto Ricans and residents have lost their right to honor, recognize, and celebrate a movement that started with them.”
