Summer Takes a Big, Beautiful Bow with J’Ouvert and The West Indian Day Parade

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Summer Takes a Big, Beautiful Bow with J'Ouvert and The West Indian Day Parade

Hundreds of thousands of people filled the streets around Empire Boulevard and Eastern Parkway as J’ouvert and the West Indian Day Parade turned the entire neighborhood into Brooklyn’s biggest party on Monday, September 7.

The official festivities began before dawn, on Flatbush Avenue and Empire Boulevard, with J’Ouvert, a celebration rooted in the emancipation of enslaved people in the Caribbean.

Summer Takes a Big, Beautiful Bow with J'Ouvert and The West Indian Day Parade

Photo by Scott Lynch

The party here is dominated by rituals and costumes, especially of the Jab Molassie character, with its devil horns, chains, and, sometimes, an octopus dangling from its mouth, and the splattering and smearing of bodies with paint, baby powder, and motor oil. J’ouvert is also where the steel pan bands get to show their stuff, rolling by on flatbed trucks and providing an appropriate soundtrack to the general vibe of giddy release.

Then, at around 11:00 a.m., the scene shifts to Eastern Parkway, where the big parade steps on Buffalo Avenue, and countless waves of crews—labor unions, church groups, political organizations, and local businesses, all blasting music and often accompanied by packs of random revelers—drink and dance their way down to Grand Army Plaza.

Photo by Scott Lynch

Politicians were out in force, of course, including Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani, as was the NYPD. The latter’s enormous presence didn’t prevent several violent incidents from happening in the neighborhood, however, as at least two shootings and four stabbings were reported.

It’s a long day for sure, but fortunately there are literally hundreds of licensed food tents and rogue snack-and-beverage operations set up all along the Parkway, providing welcome sustenance to weary party-goers.

Here are some more scenes from this year’s J’ouvert and West Indian Day Parade.