Through walking through the neighborhoods of Morrisania, Melrose, Crotona Park East and Hunts Point my supervisors Kerry and Yesmin have spoken a lot about the history of the Bronx – the ways in which vacant lots have been built into buildings, the renovations of parks, streets, and so much more. And as I walk through the streets the past few weeks, I wonder about everything that hasn’t been said but still has an impact on folks in the Bronx. Out of all of the neighborhoods, I’ve worked and am more familiar with the Crotona Park East/Morrisania area. However, after a day at the HuntsPoint Fish Parade and walking through the Hunts Point Riverside Park – I was curious about its history as Yesmin had told me it had been renovated recently within the past few years.
An important part of the Hunts point Riverside Park is its connection to the Bronx River.I had learned a bit more about the importance of the Bronx River to the Bronx itself as my coworkers and I went on a boat ride on a canoe with the Director of Rocking the Boat, Alex Severino at the Hunts Point Fish Parade. Rocking the Boat is an organization that teaches youth to build boats throughout the time period of a semester. Most students enter the programs as freshman or sophomores. From there, they can become paid apprentices and once they enter college they’re able to get a part-time position with the organization. Alex talked about how the Bronx River has cleaned up throughout the years because of the Act that was passed. The Bronx River is incredibly important to the Bronx as imports pass through there and garbage disposals are carried through the river in larger boats. She also discussed the impacts of climate change and how they are affecting the river and the ways in which the community throughout the past few years have fought for a cleaner Bronx.
A cleaner environment is important to the Bronx community with the Hunts Point Fish Parade being a clear demonstration of their desire for a cleaner environment. Historically, the Bronx in general has fought for a cleaner environment as they suffer from pollution and chemicals in the air that are coming from areas outside of the city or through their city. In her book, South Bronx Battles, her introduction reveals the disparities that Bronxites have faced for several years as pollution has caused the health of many Bronxites to deteriorate.
As a result, the community has continuously fought to maintain a clean environment, with the Hunts Point Fish Parade setting a clear example. The Hunts Point Fish Parade has occurred since 2003, with the parade being set up differently the past two years because of the pandemic. This article reveals that the Hunts Point Fish Parade came out of the community and how it was against the arrival of Fulton Market, a market coming from Manhattan.
The coming together of an entire parade represents the community’s continuous efforts to demand a cleaner Bronx, that prevents large companies from contaminating the environment with chemicals where their children play, where Bronxites work, and where they reside. The history of the Hunts PointFish Parade, the Hunts Point Riverside Park, and the Bronx River demonstrates how organizations within the Bronx continue to thrive with the continued dedication of Bronxites to create a Bronx they want. To build a Bronx according to their plans through a cleaner environment, more job opportunities for themselves and their children, and so much more. WHEDco’s involvement and the involvement of the organizations in the Bronx Wide Coalition, then, makes so much more sense now as their desires to give the community the chance to make decisions over land, and more, have been at the center of their missions. Their desires has and always will be for the Bronx to be a city that is in the community’s hands.
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