Over 1,000 People Attend Phagwah Festival in Miami

March 23, 2006

Source: The Miami Herald

https://www.hinduismtoday.com/blogs-news/hindu-press-international/phagwah-celebrated-in-florida/5813.html

On March 23, 2006 The Miami Herald reported, "Although it would be hard to tell in South Florida, the spring season just recently arrived. On Sunday, many people took this as a cause for celebration, congregating in Larry and Penny Thompson Park for Phagwah, a Hindu festival that extols, among other things, the coming of spring, which began March 20. The festival was marked with music, bright colors and painted faces, as those in attendance took the opportunity to reconnect with other members of the community and rejoice in the new season. Some people came from as far as Canada to celebrate. In the early afternoon, children gathered under a shelter at the park... to kick off the festivities with spirited singing and drumming. Some attendees were quick to equip themselves with squirt guns filled with Abeer, a traditional dye, and were determined to leave no shirt unstained. By sundown, the crowd had become a vibrant mélange of colors... The festival was backed by a local [organization], Arya Samaj of Miami, which has sponsored the yearly event for more than a decade."