Miami carnival, setting the post pandemic stage

Many people wondered what would happen to Carnival after the covid19 pandemic. The very nature of the pandemic stopped events like carnival. There were many webinars positing what a carnival might look like after the pandemic.

But this year, as mass vaccinations take place, globally, the Miami Broward One Carnival Host Committee has shot out of the blocks and will host its annual Miami Carnival. Miami, the city in the state of Florida, has been hosting its carnival for more than 30 years.

Its director for international marketing and sponsorship John Beckford believes that Miami Carnival is going to be somewhat of a template for other carnivals coming after.

“How we do what we do as we produce Miami Carnival 2021 will somewhat be a model for Carnivals in 2022.

“Certainly, there is going to be a new normal. We have heard that terminology before and there is no doubt in my mind, going forward in 2022, starting with TT’s Carnival, there will be a new normal.

“It might be some limitation on capacity, it can be (Center for Disease Control) CDC-imposed (or the local body), local government-imposed or self-imposed,” he said in his WhatsApp interview with Newsday.

The carnival will take place over the Columbus Day weekend and will run from October 8-10. Columbus Day is observed on October 11 in the US.

Getting Miami Carnival off the ground was a collective effort, Beckford said. The carnival was held virtually last year because of the pandemic. He said the committee has been working with the local government and its agencies to ensure “that we put on a safe event.” Beckford said there were ongoing meetings since last year in the planning of Miami Carnival 2021.

He said there was no hesitancy in deciding to host the event since the local government wanted to see it produced as much as the committee. But the committee is committed to the safety of everyone producing and participating in the carnival and following the rules and guidelines of the CDC is important to that cause.

But more importantly Beckford and the committee are urging anyone interested in being a part of Miami Carnival to be vaccinated. Even outside of that, the committee plans to take extra precaution at its four major events.

Beckford said at its junior carnival, Panorama, J’Ouvert, and costume parade and concert, there will be temperature checks, sanitising stations, people will be required to answer covid19 question protocols and masks will be given.

Beckford said the committee is committed to incorporating and going beyond the CDC’s minimum requirements. At the moment, things remain fluid, he said, as it was too early to give definitive guidelines from mid-June (the time the interview was done) to October.

But there will be things like mandatory masks for costumed masqueraders and patrons, Beckford said.

“We have asked all of the mas bands to incorporate the wearing of masks as part of the costume presentation.”

For Beckford, hosting the carnival was important because not only has it been a communal driver, but more importantly, an economic one.

While Carnival is a cultural baton that passes from country to country; community to community and “allows people to see folks they have not seen in a long time” it was more than that, he said.

“I think, it is not just about the beads and feathers but the economic impact carnivals around the globe have in whatever community that it is in.”

Beckford said when Caribbean folks come to Miami, they are staying in the hotels, paying the tourist tax, and renting cars. He said carnivals put heads in beds and people in local restaurants. The last time Miami Carnival did an economic impact it showed that it generated upwards of US $42 million, he said.

“That is helping that small business owner put their kids through college and what not, It is a trickle down...

"And that goes for every place where there is a carnival, he said.

For 2021, the committee anticipates seeing an even greater spend.

“Given that people were quarantined and have scaled back on their coming out....

“All of the numbers are trending in the right direction. So positivity rates are below the threshold and pretty soon the pandemic will be downgraded so to speak…Just like a hurricane…”

That was one reason the committee is encouraging people to get masked up, get vaccinated and have the numbers continue to trend the way they are, he said.

He, too, initially was sceptical about the vaccination but having seen enough people vaccinated and losing dear, childhood friends to the covid19 virus, prompted him to eventually take it. He said he got off the fence and has since encouraged others to take the vaccine. He added the vaccine was just another vaccination in the litany of vaccines that people already took.

Once people take the vaccine and follow the guidelines, Beckford said come October, Miami carnival is “going to be epic.”

“Between now and October we just need to make sure we sanitise, practise the proper social distancing rules, get tested, get vaccinated and continue to support each other in continuing to practise safe distance... So we can have a Miami Carnival in a safe way and not in a reduced capacity.”

That was why he was advising people to buy their tickets early, he said. He said everything is going to be at limited capacity and when the committee hits that number, that’s it.

“So when the tickets are sold out, they are sold out, that is it.”

He said if for some reason, however, the committee is unable to stage Carnival, just as in years past, those tickets will be honoured the next year or the following year.

“With Miami Carnival, you don’t get a ticket that you can’t use.”

But the committee was committed to doing all it can to host a safe carnival and so it is in constant communication with the city’s chief medical officer (CMO) and adhering to the suggestions and guidelines of the CDC.

While the world slowly reopens, some event organisers have asked attendees to show proof of vaccination. It was recently reported in a Toronto Sun June 17 article that some people will be required to show proof of vaccination with Pfizer, Moderna or Johnson and Johnson before accessing some events in the US like a Broadway concert by Bruce Springsteen.

Asked whether or not the committee is going to ask its patrons to see proof of vaccination, Beckford said the committee has not taken up a final position on that because it is so early. He said some events have required patrons to show proof of vaccination while some only allow vaccinated people only.

He said the committee has been watching the different models of mandatory masks and mandatory proof of vaccination and as it gets closer to October the committee will be able to formulate under the guidance and suggestion of local government, the CMO and the CDC. However, it will be vigilant and consistent because it wanted a safe environment everyone could enjoy, he said.

Whether or not artistes will have to do the same, Beckford said the committee works with a stateside talent manager who would usually set the protocols as it relates to artistes.

“Certainly for us, if we were contracting directly with an artiste what we would ask for is sticking to the suggested CDC guidelines and certainly in the same way that we encourage our patrons to get vaccinated, we would also encourage artistes to be vaccinated.”

Beckford said the committee was fortunate that there were a good handful of artistes actually in the US, like Neil Iwer George, and it made it feasible and convenient to have those artistes that are already US-based, to some degree, participate. He said the committee had to finalise the artiste line-up and it was also still a work in progress.

But whatever the final rules and guidelines, there was one thing Beckford was sure about, “the people will come” come October and Miami Carnival.