By Dan Murphy
Hundreds of Yonkers Veterans were missing from the traditional Veterans Day Ceremlny held every year at the Yonkers War Memorial on South Broadway. This was the first Veterans Day in which the ceremony was held after a Black Lives Matter mural was painted directly infront of the memorial. Several TV news crews were in attendance, which made some believe that the ‘Boycott” against the ceremony was because of the BLM Mural and was organized enough to alert the media.
Several African-American Yonkers veterans did participate in the ceremony as they have for decades. Mayor Mike Spano made comments, and AMVETS Commander Sam Riti led the pledge of allegiance. We congratulate Riti, who has been outspoken in his concerns about the BLM mural and its location next to the Yonkers War Memorial, for showing up and celebrating Veterans Day.
The mural was painted in August 2020, with private funds and volunteers providing the resources and labor to create the BLM message in Westchester largest City. In August, Mayor Mike Spano supported the decision to place the mural on South Broadway and next to the Yonkers War Memorial.
“There is no more of an appropriate place that this should be then next to City Hall and our Veterans Memorial. Our Veterans died, so that we can put this statement here. It’s moments like these that make me proud to be Mayor of a city that promotes our diversity. A city filled with over 100 different ethnicities and over 60 spoken languages – spoke in one unifying voice today.Thank you to Yonkers Arts and over 65 volunteers who painted this powerful message,” said Spano.
We spoke to Riti after the ceremony, in which he told those in attendance that the salute to our flag “is not a fist or a knee.” “Many Yonkers Veterans are upset over the BLM painting. I also had concerns and expressed my concerns to those who painted the mural and to the Mayor. But I am here today because it is Veterans Day and I’m a Veteran. Nothing will change that.”
“But I have heard from other Yonkers Veterans and Veterans groups that they will never participate in another City Veterans event ever again. People are entitled to their opinions,” said Riti.
There was no organized Veterans group in Yonkers that publicly called for the boycott, nor any Yonekrs Veterans that we could find on social media talking about any such idea.
But the fact that news crews from Channel 4-WNBC, Channel-7 WABC, and News 12 were all in attendace, and apparently waiting for something other than the regular Veterans Day ceremonies to happens, was an indication to many that something was amiss.
Earlier on Veterans Day, MGM Casino held its first Veterans Day ceremony to dedicate a new Flagpole and a donation from Rolling Thunder, a nationwide Veterans Group., This event had nothing to do with the boycott going on in Yonkers, and we will highlight the MGM Veterans event in next week’s paper.
Yonkers Rising has been covering the Veterans Day ceremony on South Broadway for more than 20 years. Usually, hundreds of Veterans are in attendace and their service and our country, are proudly celebrated.
Riti added that the Coronavirus may be another reason why so few veterans attended.
