ElectrosonicSA is proud to participate in the #LightSAred campaign

ElectrosonicSA is proud to participate in the #LightSAred campaign to call attention and highlight the struggles that our industry faces since the blanket ban on events and gatherings in South Africa due to the Coronavirus.

We join our compatriots right across the country who have lit up hundreds of buildings across South Africa tonight by lighting up the @Electrosonic HQ in Johannesburg with “Emergency Red” to highlight the dire situation the Live Events, Concert, Performing Arts and related industries have been facing since the ban on events on 15 March 2020.

We join the call to demand action from the the South African Government and financial institutions to extend financial relief to those who earn a living in the Technical Production, Live Events and Performing Arts industries, until such a time that we are permitted to resume work. We join the call to demand that the South African Government engage meaningfully with the elected leaders of the professional body SACIA, the TPSA and the SA Events Council to provide meaningful dialog, and finally we demand that the government recognizes and supports the Non-Profit Organisations that are trying to sustain destitute members of the technical production and live events industry.

Performers, venues, technical supply companies, freelance technicians and distributors of the equipment, and so many people have been affected by this blanket ban and have all had no work for the last 5 months, and our cries for support and engagement have all been ignored by the South African Government. While we fully support the measures to save lives in this terrible pandemic, we also need to ensure livelihoods of the many people and their families who have not been able to work since 15 March 2020 and are suffering further as each day passes. The SA Events Council has already proved in the past weeks that the industry can safely host events with proper precautions in place for events with larger capacities than 50 people in order to make them viable.

We are all in the heart of a terrible storm amid the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we are not all in the same boat. The Live Events industry is a sinking ship, and we are heading for the rocks. We light our building as a warning beacon and with #LightSAred to remind the government and the private industry just how much is at stake.

The @Electrosonic HQ being lit with the awesome Martin MAC Quantum Washes and Martin MH11 Fixtures. Many thanks to Stage Effects for the extra fixtures.