New Yorkers know exactly what it’s like to have the UN General Assembly in town

The world’s leaders have descended upon our city and the chaos is in full swing, says Clémence Michallon

A woman sits with her dog before the UN headquarters building during the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (AFP via Getty)

Ah, the United Nations General Assembly. If you live in New York, it is, along with pumpkin spice and knit garments, one of the signals that autumn is almost upon us. It’s also cause for quite a bit of personal inconvenience.

Case in point: I was walking my dog last night through the streets of Manhattan when my husband and I spotted a string of vehicles with flashing lights. Did we need to stop and let them through? More crucially, did we need to brace ourselves for a full-blown bark attack on the part of our dog Claudine, a feisty terrier with a loud dislike of moving vehicles, especially if they’re accompanied by sirens?

But the sirens never came on. The vehicles stopped at a red light and let us through, their blue lights still gyrating in the New York dusk. “Oh,” my husband said. “It’s the UN General Assembly. They’re transporting heads of state.”

Duh! We watched – and Claudine walked in respectful silence – as the all-important vehicles waited for the light to turn. No, we did not manage to see who was inside. But it was a seasonal check, a ritual observed by New Yorkers annually: the UNGA is in town, and it is making its usual appearance in the backgrounds of our lives.

At work, a coworker informed another he had spotted the South Korean contingent checking into a hotel in Brooklyn. Another told me that years ago, at a different job, she and her colleagues were advised not to leave their office building at certain times of the day, because getting caught in the General Assembly chaos was just not worth it.

In 2020, the General Assembly was almost entirely virtual; last year, world leaders were able to start convening in person again. Not that everything went without a hitch: Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro ate a slice of pizza on the sidewalk for dinner one night. This was reportedly because he could not access many of New York City’s finest eateries, most of which required proof of vaccination against Covid – a shot the far-right leader vocally elected not to take, despite the recommendations of health regulators in Brazil and, well, everywhere else.

The Independent, of course, is bringing you the latest throughout the United Nations General Assembly – including a full breakdown of President Biden’s speech and some analysis from insiders at the UN. As usual, we’re on the ground reporting on all the news that has global ramifications. That is, if we don’t get stuck in traffic on the way to work.

Yours,

Clémence Michallon

Senior people writer