NEW YORK, May 5. /TASS/. The Immortal Regiment march commemorating World War II heroes has been held for the fifth consecutive year in New York gathering a record number of participants - over 2,000 people. The event attracted both English-speaking Americans and descendants of veterans from Ukraine, Belarus, the Baltic countries and other former Soviet republics.
"Such events as Immortal Regiment are very important, especially here abroad, to pass the memory, the history to children who are out of touch with their homeland, as they need to identify themselves, to remember who they are. They should be proud of their historical homeland, know and honor its culture," an Odessa native Marina Blagodar who participated in the march together with her 16-year-old son, said.
The US national Frank Jamfry attended the procession together with his Russia-born wife. "May 9 is a great day. Those were the days when the Red Army with allies defeated Nazi Germany. It is very important to remember and celebrate the victory of the humanity over Nazism," he said, adding that "the majority of Americans are unaware of that," and "it is necessary to learn that world history from childhood, from earliest age."
The Immortal Regiment procession is a public event where people carry photos of their relatives who participated in the Great Patriotic War. The first march was held in the Siberian city of Tyumen in 2007, under the name of the Parade of the Victorious. In 2013, the procession was held in 120 cities. In the following year, citizens of 500 cities in seven countries walked along the streets carrying the portraits of veterans.
In the United States, the Immortal Regiment demonstrations were first convened by the Russian Youth of America in New York, San Francisco and Atlanta in 2015. The Immortal Regiment marches in the United States are held under the aegis of the Coordinating Council of Public Organizations of Russian Compatriots.