A flag-raising ceremony was held on Wall Street, New York's world-renowned financial center, on May 19 to commemorate Atatürk Memorial Day, Youth and Sports Day. This flag-raising ceremony has been taking place every May for 25 years as part of the Traditional New York Turkish Day Parade, with the participation of the Turkish community and civil society organizations living in the United States.
The event was organized by the Bowling Green Association and supported by the Turkish American National Steering Committee (TADF), held in Bowling Green Park in the Wall Street area, where the famous Charging Bull statue is located.
The ceremony was named the "42nd Annual New York Turkish Parade and Festival Flag-Raising Ceremony."
The ceremony was attended by Türkiye's Ambassador to Washington, Sedat Önal, the Representative of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) in New York, Mehmet Dana, New York Consul General Ambassador Muhittin Ahmet Yazal, New York State Assembly Member Jennifer Rajkumar, representatives from diplomatic missions, leaders of Turkish-American civil society organizations, and many Turkish citizens.
In his speech, New York Consul General Yazal emphasized Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's national struggle, which began when he landed in Samsun on May 19 and started the movement with the people of Anatolia.
Yazal pointed out that the most important cultural struggle of the Turkish community in the U.S. is to teach children the Turkish language, and thanked the teachers of schools that teach Turkish.
Bowling Green Association Manager and TADF Senior Advisor İbrahim Kurtuluş mentioned that they proudly conducted the 25th flag-raising ceremony at the historic Bowling Green.
He also stated that they were there not only to celebrate the flag-raising but also to commemorate Atatürk Memorial Day, Youth, and Sports Day.
