Avoiding a Carnival tabanca

CARNIVAL 2020 was the last of its kind in an era that has ended. The sooner we come to terms with this the better. Given the festival’s economic, social, and symbolic importance, the time to think about its fate is now. Not some indefinite point in the future.

But shouldn’t we be focused on getting through the covid19 crisis first? Don’t people who criticised Culture Minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly last month on social media for talking about Carnival 2021 have a point? Doesn’t focusing on Carnival in this moment risk making us appear superficial, trivial, insensitive? Bandleaders and Carnival stakeholders this week called for a wait-and-see approach, some giving the matter 90 days. Shouldn’t that be the approach? We couldn’t disagree more.

Many aspects of the festival require long-term planning. While improvisation and spontaneity are part of the magic, not everything can be left to the last minute. Masqueraders plan in advance, saving and putting down deposits. Visitors make bookings. Musicians begin envisioning their offerings before the season starts, sometimes planning next year’s releases moments after Carnival ends. Bands formulate designs well ahead of time. Therefore, this discussion has to happen now.

It is true a vaccine could change the picture. Such a vaccine, assuming it is universally accessible, would render safe practices that must now be viewed with caution, such as liming, feting, attending shows, and jamming on the street. Yet, experts say it is not easy to come up with a vaccine in a short space of time. Why bank on it?

Even if such a miracle were to happen, we would have learned nothing from this entire ordeal if we approached Carnival 2021 as business as usual. Before covid19, the idea of a viral pandemic seemed a remote possibility. Now, the idea of such a thing recurring needs to be a built-in part of our planning. Just as workplaces have to adapt, so too will Carnival have to change. Already some online soca fetes are being promoted. That’s the type of thinking that needs to be encouraged.

But cancellation and postponement of Carnival are also legitimate talking points. The last time Carnival was cancelled was World War II. The festival was postponed once in 1972 due to polio, and the lengthy state of emergency in 1970 placed a question mark over the event. The festival was almost cancelled in 2014 because of Ebola. Almost. With only nine months to go, we should not shy away from confronting these options, as well as the more modest idea of scaling down.

As noted by psychiatry lecturer Dr Sandra Reid at a recent forum, Carnival satisfies key emotional needs in the population. It’s not just a question of economic revenue. That’s all the more reason to get the ball rolling and avoid confusion and Carnival tabanca down the road.