‘Most Extensive Security Ever’ promised for West Indian Day Parades
City Officials: Carnival Routes Will Be Brighter and More Heavily Policed This Year to Ward Off Violence
Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner Bill Bratton announced tough new security plans for this year’s J’Ouvert and West Indian-American Day Carnival parades, to deter a repeat of the fatal violence that marred J’Ouvert in 2015.
“You will see the most extensive security ever at this year’s J’Ouvert and [West Indian Day] parade,” de Blasio said at a Wednesday press conference held in Prospect Park not far from where the parade route culminates each year.
Bratton said the NYPD will literally be doubling down on its presence at the Labor Day celebrations, deploying twice as many officers as in previous years.