Representatives of Tajikistan together with other Persian-speaking peoples joined the NY Persian Parade that took place this year on April 30. 

The parade is usually held earlier in the year, near Nowruz, the Persian New Year, which fell on March 21 this year, but organizers said they were unable to get a parade permit closer to the holiday this year.

According to Newsday, the 14th parade wound its way down Madison Avenue from 38th Street to 26th Street at Madison Square Park, where a street was blocked off.  There, Persian food vendors treated customers to tastes from home as smoke from grilled meats wafted above.

Every year, a sea of green, white, and red blankets Madison Ave as over dozens of thousands of people line the streets of New York City in celebration.  The annual Persian Parade brings together people of diverse backgrounds to honor one of the world’s richest histories, cultures, and traditions.  Representatives of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and  other countries have also participated in this cultural event in recent years.

While centered in modern-day Iran, the Persian culture encompasses different countries and religions.

Newsday says Daniel Khakshoor, 63, a chemist from Great Neck, wore a yarmulke as he marched holding one end of a banner for Persian Jews.

“We are part of Iran and we celebrate with them,” Khakshoor said.

Muallim Sho, 49, an accountant who came to Brooklyn from Khorog, Tajikistan, said he came to the parade to be with his people.

“We are part of the Iranian nation,” Sho said.  Modern-day Tajikistan was part of the Persian empire, which left its mark on the culture, he said.

“We are proud to be part of this tradition,” Sho said, according to Newsday.

Organizers said last year’s parade attracted 200,000 people.  

Persian Parade is an annual parade held in New York City, United States.  The parade was founded in 2004 by a group of Persian American immigrants who wanted to keep the Persian culture and traditions of their homeland alive.

The New York Persian Parade is staged in the middle of the traditional two-week period of celebration for Nowruz, the Persian New Year.