Mayor Adams hosts grand Saint Patrick’s Day celebration at Gracie Mansion

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New York City Mayor Eric Adams welcomed Irish dignitaries, community leaders, and proud New Yorkers to Gracie Mansion for a festive reception in honor of Saint Patrick’s Day. The event, filled with warmth and camaraderie, underscored the deep-rooted ties between Ireland and New York City.

Tánaiste Simon Harris, Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister, opened the event with heartfelt remarks, celebrating the enduring connection between the Irish diaspora and the city. “This is a city, an incredible city, one of the greatest cities on earth, and it is a city in which Irish people have and continue to play such a major, major role,” he said. “New York, perhaps more than most cities in the world, has been the chosen home of the Irish going back generations.”

Harris praised the city’s diversity and the contributions of Irish immigrants, both past and present, to the fabric of New York. “As the deputy prime minister, the Tánaiste, I’m so proud that you here in New York City recognize the wonderful contribution that successive generations of immigrants from Ireland and from every other country in the world have made to this great city,” he said.

Mayor Adams, embracing the Irish spirit of the day, playfully referred to himself as “O’Adams” and reflected on the history of Saint Patrick’s Day in New York. “When you think of March 17, 1862, when the first parade took place here in New York, it has grown into the largest parade in our country,” he said, highlighting the massive celebration that draws two million spectators and 150,000 participants annually.

Calling New York “the Emerald Isle of America,” Adams acknowledged the vital role of the Irish community in shaping the city’s identity. “Look at our bridges, our subways, look at all of the major edifices and towers that you see,” he said. “The Empire State Building, which is a symbol of our resiliency after the Great Depression… It still stands there to let us know what the contributions are and will continue to be from this community.”

The mayor emphasized the Irish influence across city services, from sanitation workers to police officers and firefighters. “All those things that make us great in the first place is right here in this room as a symbol of who we are and what we are,” he said. “I’m so proud to march in this parade each year.”

In a moment of reflection on the global challenges of today, Adams praised the resilience and unity of immigrant communities, particularly the Irish. “It is going to be the spirit of the Irish people, the various immigrant groups that came here and showed that this is the greatest city on the globe in the greatest country on the globe because of our diversity,” he declared.

With the Saint Patrick’s Day Parade set to take over Fifth Avenue, the celebration at Gracie Mansion served as a powerful reminder of the enduring Irish legacy in New York City. “Congratulations. Thank you for your contribution. Happy Saint Patrick’s Day,” Adams concluded.