PHOTOS: International Day of Friendship celebrates unity for the fourth year

Celebrating diversity the Brooklyn way.

Borough President Eric Adams hosted the borough’s fourth annual International Day of Friendship on Sunday, August 6.

The event, which is held at Brooklyn Borough Hall, Columbus Park and Fulton Mall, is designed to celebrate the melting pot that is Brooklyn, with its dozens of different cultures, and to promote unity among them.

The day is celebrated around the world, but according to Adams, with nearly one million foreign-born residents living in the borough, the day is extra special right here.

“Our diversity is our greatest strength as Americans, and that’s what International Day of Friendship is all about,” he said in a statement. “Our borough is made up of a beautiful mosaic of customs, faiths, languages and personal stories of perseverance. This celebration is all about bringing people together so that we can all appreciate our differences, learn from them, and embrace our own and other hyphens, from Dominican-American and Italian-American to Japanese-American and Nigerian-American.”

The event began with the powerful Unity Parade of Flags ceremony at 1 p.m. The borough’s youth, country delegates and other marchers walked from Long Island University to Brooklyn Borough Hall along Fulton Mall carrying 195 flags. The purpose was to bridge the gap between generations and the world.

The day also featured the Global Village, where attendees could enjoy traditional attire, foods, arts and crafts, historical information and famous sports memorabilia, among other things.

Also included was Brooklyn Fusion: A Cultural Conversation whose subject was how people can hold onto their cultural identity and what makes each unique.

Performances including readings, dancing and music highlighted the borough’s diversity.

A Taste of Ethnic Cuisine featured unique foodstuffs from all over the world as food trucks offered an array of choices.

International Day of Friendship marks the signature event in Borough President Adams’ “Embrace Your Hyphen” campaign that encourages Americans to honor their roots.