BBP Eric Adams to Convene Emergency Meeting on Violence Surrounding J'Ouvert

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams plans to call an emergency meeting on the violence surrounding this year’s J’Ouvert celebrations in Crown Heights, he said in a statement Tuesday. The time, date and place have not yet been announced.

It will include “key stakeholders,” such as police and the organizers of the nighttime event, he said.

Brooklyn is extremely proud of its Caribbean culture, highlighted every Labor Day by the West Indian American Day Carnival on Eastern Parkway, New York City’s largest parade of the year. The leadership of the West Indian American Day Carnival Association (WIADCA) has worked diligently in recent years, alongside the NYPD and local elected officials, to make sure the experience can be a safe and joyous one for everyone that attends.

The J’Ouvert celebrations, which are separate from the larger parade, have raised legitimate concerns about safety for participants and passersby alike. Even with efforts that have been taken to make these marches and parties safer, we cannot tolerate a single person getting injured or worse. I will be convening an emergency meeting of key stakeholders, including law enforcement and J’Ouvert organizers, to review the celebrations as currently constituted and determine the best course of action for next year. The celebration of J’Ouvert is not inherently violent, so we must work to remove every violent element from this otherwise festive celebration of cultural pride.

We must also remind ourselves of the larger crisis that gun violence continues to pose to our city, our state, and our nation. Left unchecked, bullets will continue to carve highways of death in our communities, whether on Eastern Parkway during J’Ouvert or at another place and time. I urge all New Yorkers, especially our lawmakers, to revisit my Take Five to Stay Alive plan to combat gun violence, which focuses on the necessary accountability and leadership we need to save lives. In particular, I am renewing my call for an emergency infusion of $10 million in City funds to support on-the-ground organizations doing critical anti-violence work, which are in urgent need of financial assistance.

Photo via Office of the Brooklyn Borough President