Mayor Adams vowed Wednesday there’ll be no “grinches” creating havoc at the 98th annual Thanksgiving Day parade, with heightened security prepared for the beloved event.
At a news conference in front of a dazzling Macy’s balloon, the mayor said there’ll be more police on the streets along the Thursday parade route — and zero tolerance for “violence and disruption” at the famed parade.
“I want to take the moment to tell those grinches that believe they are going disrupt the parade, it’s not going to happen,” the mayor said. “Just as we responded last year, we are going to be on top of those who attempt to interrupt the parade in anyway possible.”
Last year, protestors stormed the beloved Thanksgiving Day parade — calling attention to the Gaza war with demonstrators jumping barricades on Sixth Ave. near W. 45th St., and others gluing their hands to the asphalt along the parade route. The demonstration forced some of the parade’s floats, balloons, and participants to navigate around the protesters as cops struggled to move them off the street.
Pro-Palestinians protestors get arrested by the police during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, in New York (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki)
“We’re prepared,” Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey declared. “Last year we had to deal with it and we didn’t allow it to stop the parade. We were able to push the parade over. We allowed the parade to continue and we were able to take the protestors in.”
Maddrey said there were some 40 arrests at the 2023 parade.
Adams believes the experience of the NYPD, and how it deploys it police power, makes the department well-prepared for any potential threats to the parade.
“The New York City police department managed over 3,000 protests since October 7 (2023),” Adams said. “The numbers are astronomical and we were able to allow our major events — from New Years celebration to the Israeli day parade to so many other events — because we deployed the man power accordingly.”
Parking and vehicle traffic will be limited in the area, and New Yorkers are being urged to take the subway to and from the event.
Newly tapped Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said there would be an increase in police presence along the parade route and in surrounding neighborhoods with canine units, transit officers, aviation team, and cops on foot patrol all activated for the parade.
Drones are another asset that could help deal with large crowds, Tisch said.
“For tomorrow, we can tell you there are no credible or specific threats to the parade at this time,” she said. “Our intel analysts and counterterrorism officers have been preparing for this all year in close collaboration with our federal, state, and local partners.”
“As a former analyst myself, I know firsthand how incredibly detailed, thorough and methodical this work is and must be,” she added. “We have to get it right 100% of the time and we anticipate a successful parade this year.”