Permit denied for NYC's Trinidad and Tobago Parade, organizers hope to reschedule

New York City's Trinidad and Tobago Parade won't be stepping off in Brooklyn this weekend.

Organizers had planned to hold the annual event Sunday, on the eve of Trinidad and Tobago's 64th Independence Day, but they say their permit was denied a few days ago.

"I feel a little disappointed. A lot went in to prepare for this," said Danville Williamson, cofounder of Trinidad and Tobago Day in New York. "A lot of money had been spent."

In a statement, the NYPD said, "The parade was not cancelled. The organizers never had an approved permit for the event. They were given an opportunity to suggest an alternate date and route to obtain a permit but chose not to."

Williamson disputes what the NYPD says. According to Williamson, back in May, he was told the parade was a go, just like the last two years when the parade was smaller.

He says in recent weeks, however, he was asked to move the date, which he says he did, shifting it from Aug. 23 to Aug. 30.

Then he says he was asked to change the route, which he says he agreed to. The new parade route would have been around Church and Flatbush avenues in Little Caribbean, ending at Prospect Park with a family picnic under the theme "Our Culture, Our People, Our Freedom."

Earlier this week, Williamson says it was all shut down.

"The crowd would have been too much. That's what they're saying to me," Williamson said. "The last word was it was too close to Labor Day, and they don't have the manpower."

Businesses in the area say it's a loss financially and culturally.

"We feel like Trinis are being discriminated against. Everyone else gets their day," said Eveylyn Charles, co-owner of Trini Breakfast Shed. "We would have gotten a lot more business."

Joseph Baptise, with Radoes Steel Orchestra, says his group had been invited to play at the parade.

"It's kinda disappointing," he said.

Organizers are hoping to get approved for another date this year.