By NAN Staff Writer
NEWS AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NY, August 31, 2022: The twin island republic of Trinidad and Tobago turned 60 today, August 31strmaking it the Diamond Jubilee or 60 years of independence from Britain.
In New York City, Mayor Eric Adams joined dozens of Trinidad and Tobago nationals, including Hazra Ali in the Big Apple, in raising the flag of the twin island republic over Bowling Green in Lower Manhattan with Bowling Green Association Chairman Arthur Piccolo. .
“This is a significant moment,” said Mayor Adams, referring to the anniversary, while noting that before his term as mayor ends, steel pans will be in schools. He also praised the Trinidad and Tobago immigrant community in New York for their efforts as small business owners and entrepreneurs and nurses and emergency workers who put themselves on the line during the pandemic.
Speaking on the issue of immigration, Adams said that we all came from somewhere and if someone tells you to “‘go back where you came from’, tell them you will when they go back to where they came from.”
“New York is America’s city and this Trinidadian population, the largest in America, is right here,” he added. “And we all know we drink guns to sharpen the park.”
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In Washington, US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken today congratulated the people of Trinidad and Tobago on six successful decades of independence, noting that the two countries “have a strong bilateral relationship and a shared commitment to prosperity and security in the Caribbean.”
“Through cooperation and trade and investment partnerships in the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, we have made the region safer and more prosperous,” he said. “Our countries’ shared values and principles, including an unwavering commitment to democracy, will serve to strengthen our ties in the years to come.”
“As our nations rebuild from the pandemic, we reaffirm our commitment to work together to combat drug trafficking, improve energy and food security, and mitigate the effects of climate change,” Blinken added. “I wish the people of Trinidad and Tobago continued peace and prosperity in the coming year.”
Officials in T&T are celebrating the Republic’s Diamond Jubilee birthday with an Independence Day Military Parade at the Grand Stand, Queens Park Savannah in Port-Of-Spain followed by a mega concert in the evening with fireworks.
The island will celebrate throughout the month of September. A cultural caravan will travel across the country and feature internationally renowned and local artists.
