Part of the UFT contingent gathers for a group shot prior to the start of the parade.
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Jonathan Fickies
Thomas Rosa, the chapter leader at the Manhattan School for Career Development at PS 751, is dressed for the occasion.
A UFT contingent of more than 100 celebrated “la islabonita” as they joined the line of march for the annual Puerto Rican Day Parade in Manhattan on June 14. They gathered with thousands of other marchers on Fifth Avenue in a lively tribute to boricua culture and history. The actress Rita Moreno, the first Latina to win an Academy Award for her role in “West Side Story,” was the grand marshal. “From the moment we got together, participation was phenomenal,” said Monica Patino, the assistant to UFT Vice President for Education Evelyn DeJesus.
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Jonathan Fickies
Maria Maravegias (front, right), a teacher at Transit Tech HS in Brooklyn, is part of the UFT group giving out T-shirts, fans, bandanas and flags along the parade route.
UFT members distributed T-shirts, fans, flags, whistles and bandanas to the hundreds of spectators who lined the parade route. “It was a family-style celebration,” said Thomas Rosa, the chapter leader and dean of students at PS 751 in Manhattan. “I saw two of my students in the crowd, and they were so excited to see teachers in the parade.” Rosa wore a Nigerian dashiki, something that confused some spectators. “I was paying homage to the West African influence in Puerto Rican culture,” said Rosa, whose family is from the island. “We wouldn’t have salsa without the African drum. I’m always a teacher at heart.”
