50,000 Marchers Salute Israel in Fifth Avenue Parade

On Sunday thousands of Jewish day school students were joined by marchers from Jewish nonprofits, non-Jewish allies, dancing troupes, and identity groups such as Russian-speaking Jews to show support for Israel and demand that the hostages in Gaza be released from their captivity.

As Luke Tress and Jessica Steinberg wrote in The Times of Israel,

The march mostly retained its festive tone, with day school groups doing choreographed dances and costumed performers playing music.

The parade is a significant show of support for Israel in the city, and a moment of solidarity for the Jewish community, as Jewish New Yorkers continue to deal with the fallout from the October 2023 Hamas invasion of Israel.

The theme for this year was “Hatikvah,” meaning “The hope” — the title of Israel’s national anthem.

The annual event is organized by the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, with the support of the UJA-Federation of New York. Organizers strive to keep the march nonpolitical in tone.

The annual parade began in 1965 with an impromptu march by thousands of Zionist youth in support of Israel. JCRC-NY has managed the event since 2011.

Here's a sample of the hours-long parade, with 400 students of SAR Academy of Riverdale marching and singing down Fifth Avenue.

Enjoy!