Chinatown ushers in Lunar New Year with annual firecracker celebration

(29 Jan 2025) RESTRICTION SUMMARY: ASSOCIATED PRESS New York - 29 January 2025 1. Firecrackers at Sara D. Roosevelt Park for Lunar New Year celebrations 2. SOUNDBITE (English) Theresa Cheung, Lunar New Year celebration participant: ++PARTIALLY COVERED++ "We're here today, it's our first day of Chinese New Year, to celebrate the Year of the Snake. So every year we have traditional lion dance and firecracker to celebrate our new year coming along." 3. Various of firecrackers and crowds 4. SOUNDBITE (English) Theresa Cheung, Lunar New Year celebration participant: ++PARTIALLY COVERED++ "Also a new beginning, just like a snake when they have old skin. So they shed it off and a new beginning comes along." 5. Tight of Cheung with daughter holding Year of the Snake-themed dolls. UPSOUND (Mandarin), Theresa Cheung: "Gung hay fat choy." 6. Medium of firecrackers setup 7. SOUNDBITE (English) Jason Jiang, organizer, Better Chinatown USA: ++PARTIALLY COVERED++ "We've organized this event for 27 years and every time we attract a lot of visitors and local people to come to Chinatown and make Chinatown better." 8. Wide of crowds with police presence 9. Medium of firecrackers 10. SOUNDBITE (English) Jason Jiang, organizer, Better Chinatown USA: ++PARTIALLY COVERED++ "It's very good. It's very nice weather. Everything is going well. And people say, 'Everyone is happy.' So, you're all happy, we're happy. Happy New Year!" 11. Wide of crowds 12. Tight of child holding a Year of the Snake doll 13. Medium of stilt walkers 14. SOUNDBITE (English) Daniel Zhu, volunteer: ++PARTIALLY COVERED++ "I'm hoping for this holiday to be more recognized. It's mostly only celebrated by Chinese people at this time. But I think the idea of making it a day off school is a really a big step forward and it's just going to keep going higher and higher." 15. Child with Year of the Snake doll and dragon costume 16. Child holding dragon doll marionette 17. SOUNDBITE (English) Rygel Ng, spectator: ++PARTIALLY COVERED++ "Chinese New Year symbolizes a fresh start for everyone. It's also, like, if you do it right, you can grant yourself like good luck for the entire year." 18. Tight of Year of the Snake dolls 19. Tight of firecrackers and crowds STORYLINE: New York City hosted its annual Firecracker Ceremony and Cultural Festival at Sara D. Roosevelt Park in the heart of Chinatown to mark Lunar New Year. The event marked the beginning of the Year of the Snake. Participants enjoyed vibrant lion dances, speeches from local leaders, and a firecracker display on one of the park's basketball courts. Students enjoy a day off from school on Lunar New Year, also known as Chinese New Year. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed legislation in September 2023 to make it an official public school holiday. =========================================================== Clients are reminded to adhere to all listed restrictions and to check the terms of their licence agreements. For further assistance, please contact the AP Archive on: Tel +44(0)2074827482 Email: [email protected]. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...