Following a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the 116th Dorchester Day Parade returned Sunday along Dorchester Avenue from Lower Mills to Savin Hill at the intersection of Columbia Road.
Children watch as the Dorchester Day Parade passes by along Dorchester Avenue on June 5, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. ANGELA ROWLINGS PHOTO
Elected officials and hopefuls gathered at the start of the 3.2-mile route for a ribbon cutting as a handful of anti-vaccination and anti-mask protesters heckled Mayor Michelle Wu, who attended with her two young sons accompanying her on scooters.
The celebration marks the day in 1630 when Puritans landed at what is now the Columbia Point section of the neighborhood to found Dorchester as one of the earliest English settlements in Massachusetts Bay Colony.
Traditionally held the first Sunday in June, marchers included dance troupes, Dorchester Baseball players, floats from Little Saigon and Dorchester Brewing Company, as well as bands and color guards.
Little Miss Dorchester Ryleigh Mahoney and Young Miss Dorchester Savannah Washington wave from a convertible as they ride in the Dorchester Day Parade on June 5, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. ANGELA ROWLINGS PHOTO
The parade is an important stop for local and statewide political campaigns, as it makes its way through a traditionally politically active neighborhood of 113,000 people.
This year, participants expressed their excitement to perform once again.
“It’s awesome to be back,” said Licia McLean, co-owner of 4 Star Dance Studio. “It’s been a long haul through the pandemic and we’re just glad the kids are able to come back out and be a part of this while we trying to still get through it.”
