"I feel good about being here," Lopez Rivera told the New York Post as he pounded his chest and chanting "Que viva Puerto Rico!" Lopez Rivera's supporters followed, carrying signs that read, "Oscar Lopez Rivera is our Mandela." Most of the tens of thousands of revelers turned out simply to celebrate Puerto Rico, happily salsa dancing and waving Puerto Rican flags. This year, it comes on the same day Puerto Ricans vote among three choices: independence, statehood or their current territorial status. New York held its first Puerto Rican parade in 1958, when it was barely legal to display the Puerto Rican flag on the island and Puerto Ricans on the mainland faced harsh discrimination.

Source: Fox News June 11, 2017 19:33 UTC