New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg opened German-American Friendship Month
On Wednesday, September 2, Mayor Michael Bloomberg once again officially proclaimed the month of September to be "German-American Friendship Month” in the City of New York. More than 150 members of the German-American community attended the reception at Deutsches Haus at NYU, where the Mayor talked about his own experience with Germans, German-Americans and the German language.
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- The Mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, and Miss German-America Virginia Kovak
- (© Bob Radske)
In his opening remarks Mayor Bloomberg spoke about previous Berlin visits, his admiration for the German capital and how he got around without knowing any German. Kathrin DiPaola, director of the Deutsches Haus at NYU, pointed out that U.S. Ambassador Murphy and his family learned German before assuming their post in Berlin. For the case that the Ambassador should prefer to talk to Mayor Bloomberg in German, Consul General Horst Freitag presented him with a dictionary. The Mayor appreciated the friendly gesture, but admitted that he was currently learning Spanish. Having received an original German beer stein earlier in the evening, he said that this was a gift he could put to use more often.
Until the 1970s German was mostly spoken in Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Then Germans started to move from Yorkville to other areas all over the city. The German-American Friendship Month is living proof that the German-American community has left their mark in New York. During the immigration waves in the 19th century, New York was the first stop for all immigrants to the United States and among them, Germans became the largest group. They all brought their expertise and skills, tradition and culture, hopes and dreams to the Big Apple – and some German immigrants became famous New York icons: John Roebling, who built the Brooklyn Bridge, for example, or Heinrich Steinway, who founded the world-renowned piano factory.
On Saturday, September 19, the 52nd Steuben Parade will take over Fifth Avenue to celebrate German-American heritage, friendship and partnership. This year’s historic milestones – the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the 60th anniversary of the Federal Republic of Germany - will also be reflected in the colorful parade that starts on 67th Street and ends on 86th Street.
For more information in the German-American Friendship Month and the Steuben Parade:
www.SteubenParade.com
Don’t forget to check out www.GermanyinNYC.org for a complete listing of all German-American Friendship Month events.
