The Year in Photos
New York showed its resiliency in 2023. With COVID rates at a pandemic low, life in the five boroughs settled into a new kind of normal, with people packing a brewery for live wrestling, actors and writers joining the picket line and hip-hop celebrating 50 years since its birth in The Bronx.
Of course there were still struggles. More than 60, 000 migrants crowded into city shelters on many nights, requiring, Mayor Adams said, across-the-board budget cuts. Detainees continued to speak about inhumane conditions on Rikers Island, and a federal corruption investigation loomed over City Hall.
Here are some of THE CITY’s most arresting photos documenting 2023 as a year of transition.
Transgender woman Tamera Harrison was housed in the Rose M. Singer women’s facility on Rikers Island after being abused and assaulted in a male unit, Jan. 17, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Sanitation workers at a Staten Island waste transfer station turn yard waste into mulch, Feb. 8, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
A person was killed while surfing on top of a subway crossing over the Williamsburg Bridge, Feb. 21, 2022.
Credit: Hiram Alejandro Durán/THE CITY
Seniors plunge into the city’s only Olympic-size indoor pool during the reopening of the Flushing Meadows Corona Park facility, Feb. 27, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Bruce McIntyre plays with his son, Elias, in the common area of their Yonkers apartment building following a three-year ordeal to gain custody after his partner died in childbirth, March 10, 2023.
Credit: Hiram Alejandro Durán/THE CITY
Twin morticians Melvin, left, and Marvin Morgan were set to retire after serving the city for 23 years, March 23, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Councilmembers with the progressive caucus storm the stage at the Rent Guidelines Board meeting at Cooper Union, May 2, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
On Houston Street, police slammed to the ground a protester taking part in a vigil for killed subway performer Jordan Neely, May 8, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
City Hall Asian Affairs advisor Winnie Greco speaks with Mayor Eric Adams at a community event in Flushing, May 31, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Smoke from Canadian wildfires settles over Lower Manhattan and the Brooklyn waterfront, June 7, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Sebastian Leshawn, left, takes the upper hand against Paris Sahara in a Matter of Pride Wrestling match at Strong Rope Brewery in Red Hook, June 11, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
A pile of e-bikes sat near the scene of a deadly fire at a repair shop on Madison Street in Chinatown, June 20, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Several female asylum seekers spoke about facing sexual harassment while staying in a hotel shelter on Fourth Avenue in Sunset Park, June 23, 2023.
Credit: Marcus Santos/THE CITY
A crane caught fire on the roof of 550 10th Ave. before partially tumbling onto the street, injuring six people, July 26, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Maikol Contreras cuts Rafael Ramos’ hair while they wait for shelter space outside the Lincoln Correctional Facility in East Harlem, July 28, 2023.
Credit: Haidee Chu/THE CITY
An Animal Care Center worker brings a dog into their East Harlem building, July 31, 2023. The nonprofit says they have seen a surge in people giving up pets.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Family, friends and supporters of O’Shae Sibley prepared to march from the LGBTQ Community Center in the West Village to the Christopher Street pier in honor of the slain dancer, Aug. 5, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Break dancers celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip hop at Mill Pond Park in the South Bronx, Aug. 11, 2023.
Credit: Marcus Santos/THE CITY
Former Department of Buildings commissioner Eric Ulrich sits in Manhattan Criminal Court during his arraignment on bribery charges, Sept. 13, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
FiDi resident Harish Kamath walked his 4-year-old son Ray to school, Sept. 15, 2023. “I see more strollers now than briefcases,” said Kamath about seeing the neighborhood evolve since he moved into the area in 2019.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Performers walk the picket line in Times Square as the actors and writers’ strike stretched into the fall, Sept. 15, 2023.
Credit: Alex Krales/THE CITY
Thousands of environmental advocates march through Midtown calling for the end of fossil fuels, Sept. 17, 2023.
Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
Thousands of people turned out to Dag Hammarskjold Plaza in Manhattan in support of Israel several days after Hamas terrorists killed hundreds of civilians, Oct. 10, 2023.
Credit: Alex Krales/THE CITY
Hundreds of people rally in Times Square in support of Palestinians under siege by the Israeli army in Gaza, Oct. 13, 2023.
Credit: Alex Krales/THE CITY
Felicia Cade performs her poetry during a slam at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in the Lower East Side, Oct. 13, 2023. The famed performance spaced closed down later in the month for a three-year renovation project.
Credit: Alex Krales/THE CITY
Mayor Eric Adams speaks at a Bowling Green flag-raising ceremony for Turkey. A few weeks later federal investigators raided his chief fundraiser’s home as part of a probe into potential foreign contributions, Oct. 27, 2023.
Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office
Migrant Jaile Escalón shops with her children for warm winter clothes at a Salvation Army near the Floyd Bennett Field family shelter, Nov. 21, 2023.
Credit: Gwynne Hogan/THE CITY
Miraculously, no one was injured when a Bronx building in Morris Heights partially collapsed, Dec. 12, 2023.
Credit: Alex Krales/THE CITY
The Union Square holiday market was bustling ahead of Christmas and Hanukkah, Dec. 5, 2023.
Credit: Alex Krales/THE CITY