#PickoftheWeek | Diwali Motorcade to Light Up Liberty Avenue on Nov. 2

Let’s Light Up Liberty!

That’s the slogan for this year’s Diwali Motorcade, which the Divya Jyoti Association will present on Little Guyana Avenue (aka Lefferts Boulevard and Liberty Avenue) in Richmond Hill on Saturday, Nov. 2, from 3 pm to 8 pm.

Several thousand people are expected to attend the celebration, which will include dancing, singing, Tassa drumming, sitars, and spirituality on a stage amid several blocks of colorful costumes, vendors, and incense.

Derived from the Sanskrit word for “row of lights,” Diwali (or Deepavali) is the most positive time of year for many Hindus and some Sikhs and Buddhists. It’s a time of solidarity when the soft light of diyas – or oil-wick candles – illuminate streets and homes, banishing the darkness of ignorance and suffering.

A positive energy always fills Richmond Hill during the annual motorcade, but this year should have an extra-strong feeling as it’s the first celebration after Diwali was declared a public school holiday in New York City. (Legislation S.7574/A.7769 requires that all NYC public schools on the 15th day of the eighth month of the Indian calendar in each year.)

It’s also one of the first celebrations after the Little Guyana Avenue street sign was unveiled at Lefferts Boulevard and Liberty Avenue in 2021. The renaming honors the area’s 25,000-plus Guyanese community, which is actually the largest one outside the South American country. (Diwlai is a huge holiday in Guyana.)

As the motorcade is a street festival, parking is difficult. Taking the A train to the Ozone Pk-Lefferts Boulevard station is recommended.

Images: Buddy Singh