Prayer Gathering in New York on August 15
The 50th death anniversary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was observed in New York with spontaneous participation. This year, under a changed political context, the entire city seemed to turn into “Bangabandhu Square” on August 15. Not only leaders and activists of the Awami League but also members of the wider community joined in significant numbers.
Across New York, various political, social, and cultural organizations organized programs to honor the Father of the Nation. These included salutes to Bangabandhu’s portrait by freedom fighters, discussions, documentary screenings, special prayers, communal meals, and the distribution of saplings and prayer mats. Each program began with the national anthem.
In Jackson Heights alone, eight separate programs were held. At some events, giant digital screens displayed Sheikh Mujib’s images along with his historic March 7 speech. Commemorations were also held in Bronx, Brooklyn, Jamaica, and Astoria—areas with large Bangladeshi populations.
The events were organized by the US Awami League, New York Metropolitan Awami League, Awami Paribar, Jackson Heights Community, Ekattorer Prohori Foundation-USA, Muktijuddher Bangladesh, the August 15 National Mourning Day Committee, Bangladesh Awami Forum USA, Gopalganj Foundation America Inc., among others.
Speakers included Dr. Siddiqur Rahman, President of US Awami League; journalist Syed Mohammad Ullah; Dr. Nurun Nabi; Muhammad Fazlur Rahman; Dr. Pradip Ranjan Kar; Dr. Masudul Hasan; Dr. Dilip Nath, and many other community leaders.
In their remarks, speakers said that Bangabandhu could never be erased from the soil of Bengal. “Sheikh Mujib was a wonder—if attempts were made to remove him from the map, he emerged as a friend on the world map,” they noted.
They further emphasized that this August 15 proved, both in reality and across social media, that the Father of the Nation remains immortal, eternal, and ever-present in the hearts of Bengalis.
Notably, during the previous government, the day was observed officially as National Mourning Day in the United States. However, after the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government on August 5, the interim government revoked the national holiday. As a result, for the first time in 15 years, the Bangladesh Permanent Mission to the UN and the Bangladesh Consulate in New York did not hold official commemorations.
