The day before the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the enormous balloons featured in the parade have to be inflated, secured with ropes and nets, and anchored with sandbags. What used to be a neighborhood tradition for children and their parents on the streets surrounding the American Museum of Natural History has become a major tourist attraction with an enormous police presence and security. This year, not for the first time, the New York City mayor and police commissioner held a news conference to assure the public that the parade will be safe and there is “no credible threat” to New York or the parade.
Mayor Eric Adams with Police Commissioner Jessica TischPolice Commissioner Jessica Tisch (right) addresses the mediaA member of Macy’s professional inflation team proudly wearing his helium T-shirt
June 14, 2025: Protesters marched down Fifth Avenue as part of the national No Kings protests against the policies of the current administration. Crowd estimates vary, but some 50,000 people marched in New York on a rainy day and over 1 million marched nationwide.
Protesters gathered on the steps of the New York Public Library before the march began.A young protester holds a copy of the Pledge of Allegiance. June 14 was Flag Day in the US.Lead marchers hold a banner on Fifth AvenueA woman protesting on Fifth AvenueA Trump supporter shouted “He’s my king!” at the lead protesters. The police escorted him away from potential confrontation.Protesters kept their focus on the theme of the marchThe marchers continued down Fifth AvenueThe marchers were undeterred by a steady, light rainfallSeveral jazz bands marched in the protest in spite of the rain
The large protest march from the New York Public Library to Central Park was perhaps smaller than the massive protest two weeks earlier, but with its two main themes of immigration and climate there was no less energy among the many thousands of people who joined the nationwide protests.
On April 5, tens of thousands of people, possibly 100,000, marched in New York City as part of nationwide protests against the administration. The estimate is that people joined 1600 protests across the country. In New York, the protesters filled 20 blocks of Fifth Avenue for over 3 hours. Well organized, peaceful, and orderly, the protest included families with children, people in wheelchairs, the elderly, and the young. A frequent chant was “This is What Democracy Looks Like.”
The view from the steps of the New York Public Library on Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street as protesters waiting to march filled the streetsElon Musk and DOGE were frequent objects of the marchers’ criticism
A large protest march started out at Foley Square in Manhattan on March 15, directly across from the Federal Courthouse. The protesters demonstrated against cuts to health care and the social safety net, and the firing of federal workers, marching past ICE headquarters and City Hall before proceeding down Broadway to Lower Manhattan. Senator Chuck Schumer was a focus of their anger after he voted with Republicans for a funding bill without negotiating.
Two doctors from New York Health and Hospitals demonstrated against cuts to Medicaid.Protesters marching past City Hall Protesters’ anger at Senator Chuck Schumer was palpableUnion members expressed their anger at Senator Chuck Schumer for not opposing the Republican spending bill
On March 8, 2025 there were at least three different demonstrations in downtown Manhattan. After photographing the protest at the Tesla dealership in the Meatpacking section, I went to Union Square to cover the end of the International Women’s Day protest. Thousands of demonstrators gathered in support of women’s equality in a demonstration that lasted over three hours.
Some demonstrators dressed in costumes from The Handmaid’s Tale The quote is from the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader GinsburgFlying the American flag upside down is a sign of distress
On March 8, 2025 a crowd of several hundred people gathered at the Tesla Dealership to protest Elon Musk’s actions in the Trump administration. The protest was peaceful, but a small group of people rushed past police lines into the showroom and were quickly arrested. There was no violence.
With the threat of significant Federal funding cuts to major scientific and medical institutions across the country, people rallied in multiple cities to support science. At the rally in Washington Square Park, two Nobel Prize winning scientists addressed the crowd of mostly young researchers whose futures and careers are in danger.
Dr. Martin Chalfie, second from left, and Dr. Harold Varmus, far right, wait to address the crowd. Both are Nobel Prize winning scientists.
On January 17, President’s Day, protests against the Trump administration took place in all 50 state capitols. In New York City, thousands marched to Washington Square Park to protest near the great arch memorializing our first President.
Children cheering for the marchersProtesters marching from Union Square to Washington Square Park“Down with Autocracy” sign held by a protester in front of the famous Washington Square ArchProtesters under the Washington Square Arch with a statue of George Washington in the backgroundThere is some irony here since Washington, whose statue is seen on the arch, was a slave owner. The upside-down American flag is a sign of distress A protester standing under the Washington Square Arch looks up Fifth AvenueA safety pin was a sign of resistance to the Nazi occupiers in Norway and the Netherlands during World War II.
After a tumultuous year, a look back at the photographs that feel most meaningful. I chose images that express beauty, hope, or public events where people came together to celebrate.
An installation of shimmering colored ribbons bearing the prayers and wishes of people from the community hung from the ceiling of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. February 2024The annual Lunar New Year parade in Chinatown celebrating the Year of the Dragon. February 2024In Central Park, a memorial for Flaco, the beloved Eurasian Eagle Owl who escaped from the zoo and lived free for a year before dying of rodenticide poisoning. He captured the hearts of New Yorkers and people all over the world. March 2024The main gate to the Columbia University campus was locked and students protesting the war in Gaza were removed from the campus by police. In the photo, balloons with the colors of the university decorate the gate. Eight months later, the campus remains closed to anyone without a university ID. April 2024A faint rainbow over Notre-Dame de Paris, still under reconstruction in May 2024 five years after a devastating fire nearly destroyed it. The Sainte-Chapelle in Paris, an indescribably beautiful High Gothic chapel built in the 13th century by King Louis IX to house relics. May 2024With a passing thunderstorm across the Rhone River, dramatic light illuminates the Papal Palace in Avignon, France. May 2024A street scene in Arles, France shows the light and color of Provence that enchanted Van Gogh. May 2024
In St-Rémy en Provence, the Transhumance celebrates the annual passage of sheep from the valleys to their summer grazing grounds high in the surrounding mountains. After the procession of the bewildered sheep running through the village streets, hungry French spectators descent on the open air market and the restaurants and bars to continue the celebration in the way the French know best. The Transhumance is considered part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of France and always takes place on Pentecost Monday, a national holiday in May.
Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus, Flamands Roses) flying over the Camargue in southern France. May 2024
In the spring, a pair of Red-Tailed Hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) chose to build their nest on the facade of the New York Athletic club, some of Manhattan’s most expensive real estate. Here the female is resting above the nest and the symbol of the NYAC, a winged foot.
The mother hawk flies off to hunt for food as two of the three nestlings watch. The boldest of the three nestlings flaps its wings energetically and hops around the nest, but is not quite able to take off. Within a week, all three successfully fledged (flew out of the nest). An autumn afternoon in Central Park. October 2024The Greenwich Village Halloween Parade, October 31. These women were part of a Mexican group celebrating the Day of the Dead and accompanied by a mariachi band. October 31The lead runners of the 2024 New York Marathon rounding the final turn to the finish line. Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya held her lead and won. November 3The most complete Stegosaurus ever found, 150 million years old and nicknamed Apex, took up residence at the American Museum of Natural History where he/she will be studied by paleontologists.
DeborahShapiroPhotos 