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MARKOWITZ JOINS BROOKLYN'S CHINESE-AMERICAN COMMUNITY TO CELEBRATE THE NEW YEAR

	In photo (from left): Students from PS 105 in Sunset Park perform a traditional dance at the opening ceremony of the Annual Chinese New Year Celebration Parade in Brooklyn.
Photos by Laura Geiser In photo 1: Borough President Markowitz helps to “awaken the lion” by painting its eyes.

On Sunday, February 5, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz joined the Brooklyn Chinese-American Association for the Annual Chinese New Year Celebration Parade on Eighth Avenue in Sunset Park. The opening ceremony for the celebration featured firecrackers, a traditional lion dance, a kung fu demonstration, and other performances.

“Brooklyn is home to the fourth largest Chinese-American community in the nation, and the fastest-growing Chinese population in New York City,” said Borough President Markowitz. “There’s no better place to ring in the Year of the Dog than in Brooklyn’s own Chinatown, right here in Sunset Park.”

The Association has presented the New Year parade since 1988. Firecrackers symbolize a ritual cleansing of homes and businesses, while lion dances bring good luck and fortune to the community.