NEW YORK -- New York City's annual Columbus Day Parade returns to Manhattan on Monday, two days after the celebration marched through Brooklyn.
Tomorrow, many streets along the parade route will be closed. The parade marches through Midtown, up 5th Avenue from 42nd Street to 72nd.
These streets will be closed at NYPD's discretion on parade day, according to the New York City Department of Transportation:
In addition to the parade, there will also be street closures for the Columbus Day Festival on Monday.
Broadway between Liberty Street and Battery Place will be closed at NYPD's discretion for the event, DOT said.
Brooklyn's Columbus Day Parade marched through Bensonhurst on Saturday. The parade has been a tradition in the borough for over 40 years.
Hundreds of people -- many proudly waving Italian flags -- marched up 18th Avenue, aka Cristoforo Colombo Boulevard, to Il Centro Community Center, New York City's first Italian-American cultural center.
Columbus Day is a celebration of Christopher Columbus, who was born in Italy and known to have discovered what's considered "the New World," modern-day North and South America.
"It's a celebration of the contributions of who we are. All of us. And every one of us should celebrate," said Jack Spatola, chairman of the Federation of Italian American Organizations of Brooklyn and executive chairman of the parade.
The Brooklyn parade has grown to represent more than Italian culture, including "Asian Americans ... Arabic, Irish, all different backgrounds. It's great," Spatola said.
The federal holiday has faced controversy recently over claims that Columbus exploited and abused indigenous people, so some states changed to name to Indigenous Peoples Day. It's still Columbus Day in New York.
