Pandemic forces the cancellation of Rochester’s Puerto Rican Festival
Written by Site Hub on April 25, 2020
On Friday, April 17, the president of the board that organizes Rochester’s Puerto Rican Festival, Orlando Ortiz, announced that the June 14, 2020 event has been canceled. It won’t return until some time next year. The Puerto Rican Festival is well-known as the city’s longest-running multicultural festival.
The decision to cancel was made in coordination with city officials after organizers realized that the pandemic makes the face-to-face nature of the festival a public health risk. Tens of thousands of people usually attend the festival each year. Last year’s attendance was above 21,000.
As Ortiz explained in a statement: “This was a difficult decision to make after we had such an amazing 50th celebration in 2019… This is the socially responsible action to take and is consistent with other community events given the current climate.”
Since 1970, the Puerto Rican Festival has been a celebration of Puerto Rican culture, food and music. It has helped give Latinos in Rochester and nearby areas a greater sense of community.
The festival’s organizers have decided to shift their focus to a COVID-19 social distancing awareness campaign for the Latino community called “Protect Your Circle.” Many Latinos find social distancing difficult because of close family and community ties. The campaign will be handled in partnership with Rochester City officials and the Ibero-American Action League.
https://13wham.com/news/local/puerto-rican-festival-postponed-due-to-coronavirus
https://www.wxxinews.org/post/rochesters-puerto-rican-festival-postponed-summer
