Cultural Encounter: Canyon of Heroes

A few weeks ago, I decided (for no particular reason) that rather than take the subway, I would walk through the downtown Financial District. At some point, every so many steps that I took, a plaque appeared on the sidewalk bearing a date and a particular person or event. It didn’t take me long to realize that I was walking down the “Canyon of Heroes,” a walk that I had certainly done before at a much younger age but since forgotten.

Anyway, as I progressed down the street, I passed such placards noting past parades celebrating world leaders such as Winston Churchill, or Dwight Eisenhower, and events such as ‘V-J Day,’ (the day World War II ended). It dawned on me however that the most notable use in recent years of the ‘Canyon’ was by the Yankees and the Giants, both sports teams celebrating their respective championship efforts. Certainly, sports teams have been lauded in the past, but never were they the main focus of the parade route. In August of 1945, at the conclusion of the Second World War, in the masses all different kinds of Americans centered on the Canyon to celebrate, ultimately dumping some 5000 tons of ticker-tape (compared to avg. 50 tons for sports teams) down onto the streets. Of course it is great to celebrate when the Yankees (or Mets for that matter) win, but it is also great to think of the time, when such parades were reserved for more important things.