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Partying 'Til Dawn & Beyond On The Streets Of Brooklyn: Photos From J'Ouvert 2015
By
John Del Signore
Published Sep 8, 2015
Modified Sep 8, 2015
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Christian Hansen / Gothamist
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By
John Del Signore
Published Sep 8, 2015
Modified Sep 8, 2015
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The traditional Caribbean celebration of J'Ouvert brought thousands of revelers out to the streets of Brooklyn early Monday morning for the annual predawn party preceding the West Indian Day parade along Eastern Parkway. The festivities featured steel drum and other percussive music, accompanied by dancing masqueraders in colorful powdered paint and oil.
Photographer Christian Hansen stayed out until dawn photographing the scene. He did not personally witness any of the violence that left an aide to Governor Cuomo in critical condition after gunfire erupted between rival gangs. And hours before the official J'Ouvert kickoff, a 24-year-old man was fatally stabbed and a 21-year-old man was shot in the buttocks at Grand Army Plaza and Eastern Parkway.
Revelers on the streets in Crown Heights appeared to be unaware of the earlier spate of violence, and an exultant mood prevailed through sunrise, when Eastern Parkway was gradually flooded with over a million people for the parade. Check out those photos here.
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John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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