Bill Text: NY K00537 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

New York Assembly Resolution 537 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Commemorating Indian Arrival Day in Guyana to be celebrated May 5, 2023

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Passed) 2023-05-23 - adopted [K00537 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-K00537-Introduced.html


Assembly Resolution No. 537

BY: M. of A. Rajkumar

        COMMEMORATING  Indian  Arrival Day in Guyana to be
        celebrated May 5, 2023

  WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to  recognize  and
pay  just  tribute  to  the cultural heritage of the ethnic groups which
comprise and contribute to the richness and diversity of  the  community
of the State of New York; and

  WHEREAS,  Attendant  to  such  concern,  and  in  keeping  with  its
time-honored traditions, it is the intent of this  Legislative  Body  to
commemorate  Indian  Arrival Day in Guyana to be celebrated May 5, 2023;
and

  WHEREAS, A public holiday in the  Cooperative  Republic  of  Guyana,
Indian Arrival Day celebrates the rich history, cultural importance, and
incredible contributions of the Indo-Guyanese; and

  WHEREAS,  The  day marks the anniversary of the arrival of the first
Indians at what was then the colony of British Guiana on  May  5,  1838,
when two ships, the Whitby and the Hesperus, landed carrying 396 Indians
from  Calcutta  to work on the sugar plantations as indentured laborers;
and

  WHEREAS, The Indian population continued to grow, with about 240,000
people coming from the Indian subcontinent to British  Guiana  by  1917;
and

  WHEREAS, The Indian population flourished and now contributes to all
facets  of  life  in  Guyana,  constituting  almost  40  percent  of the
population and the largest ethnic group in the country; and

  WHEREAS, New York City is home to the  largest  Guyanese  expatriate
community  in  the  world, with a population of over 140,000, comprising
one of the largest  international-born  populations  in  the  city,  and
living   predominantly   in   Queens,  with  a  large  concentration  of
Indo-Guyanese residing in Richmond Hill and Ozone Park; and

  WHEREAS, In addition to Guyana, numerous nations  in  the  Americas,
Oceania,  and Africa celebrate their own versions of Indian Arrival Day,
demonstrating the worldwide reverence for the outstanding  contributions
of the global Indian diaspora; and

  WHEREAS,  This  Legislative Body is pleased to have this opportunity
to recognize such events of significance which foster ethnic  pride  and
exemplify  the  cultural  diversity  that represents and strengthens the
fabric of the people and the State of New York; now, therefore, be it

  RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its  deliberations  to
commemorate  Indian  Arrival Day in Guyana to be celebrated May 5, 2023;
and be it further

  RESOLVED, That copies of this  Resolution,  suitably  engrossed,  be
transmitted  to  the  Consuls  General  of India and Guyana, and various
Indian and Guyanese organizations in the State of New York.