In the red: Bend’s Tower Theatre joins effort to support live event workers
Venues were among first to close their doors, and might be the last to reopen
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ)-- The live entertainment industry has been one of the hardest hit across the nation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Venues across the country took a stance Tuesday night to bring attention to their ongoing economic struggles. Central Oregon joined the party.
Last week, Portland live event workers issued a call to action: Light our cities red.
Bend's Tower Theatre was there to answer the call, and turned.
This rallying cry is part of a national effort to bring awareness to live events workers who are advocating for the Federal Reserve Restart Act.
The Restart Act is a bill that would extend the Paycheck Protection Program, which was initially established to support small businesses with fewer than 500 full-time employees that suffered a business decline of at least 25%.
As it stands now, the Live Events Coalition says more than 80% of Oregon event businesses and workers have lost all income due to COVID-19.
"We work in the background by definition, so we're invisible," said Dwayne Casey of Greenlight Creative in Portland. "This whole process has been, 'Oh how many of you are there?' 'Oh, 12 million.'"
Bend's Flip Flop Sounds and the Tower Theatre joined forces to show support for workers here in Central Oregon.
Industry veterans like Courtney Latham of Flip Flop Sounds say they are facing the same economic troubles as others, but they feel like their industry is not receiving the same support from Washington.
"We're being forgotten about. We can't pivot," Latham said. "While a restaurant can do curbside, while grocery stores can have increased spacing, we're left without any way to move forward."
Dwayne Thomas says this is just their "opening act" to raise awareness of their issues.
On Tuesday, Sept. 22, the coalition plans on the entire state of Oregon making a concentrated effort with the hashtag #RedAlert.
They fear without any further financial assistance, this could be their final act.
