NEW YORK, May 6. /TASS/. About 200 people took part in the Immortal Regiment march in Denver, Colorado, on Saturday to remember relatives who took part in World War Two, organizer Tahir Minullin told TASS.
"This has been a third such march in Colorado. About 350 people participated last year, while today 150 to 200 have got together," he said. He said weather is changeable ahead of May 9 in the city, "with either rain or snow, which is why many people, especially elderly, have failed to come".
The procession marched about 1.5 kilometers, including around the Capitol Building. The route ran so that there was no need to restrict traffic flows or ask police to ensure security during the march.
"On Sunday, we will have a traditional picnic devoted to May 9," Mintullin said.
The organizers of the Immortal Regiment procession in Denver are trying to involve as many Americans as possible "to have our relations better here," he added. "We bring here Americans from different places. One female American, for example, said she wanted to take part in the action wearing her father’s Navy uniform," he said, adding that people had come from Boulder, Colorado Springs and other big cities of Colorado.
This year, Immortal Regiment marches take place between May 5 and 10 in 28 cities across the US, including in Boston, Philadelphia, San Diego, Houston and New York City.
The ‘Immortal Regiment’ march is an annual event held throughout Russia and in other countries. The event is dedicated to the victory in Great Patriotic War (part of WWII) that claimed lives of about 28 million Soviet people, both soldiers and civilians. During the march, people carry portraits of their relatives who fought or died during the war. For the first time the event was held in 2007 in the city of Tyumen, then it was called Victory Parade. The name Immortal Regiment appeared in 2012 when a similar rally was held in Tomsk. Since 2015 the ‘Immortal Regiment’ march has become nationwide.