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The Online News Bureau of the Diaspora
Dis & Dat
Friday September 10, 2004
By The Hardbeat News Team
After 37 years of carnival in Brooklyn, we finally saw the release this week of the first real economic impact study of the event on the city’s coffers. At least, the impact for a single year -2003 - as determined by a state-funded study, implemented by researchers at The Lugano Group Incorporated.
The study found that the total economic impact – direct and indirect - for last year was $154.8 million with the direct impact only being $86 million. This is about 50 percent less than organizers have run around over the years claiming and at least $50,000,000 less than what was reported by the organization’s President, Yolanda Lezama-Clark, at the VIP breakfast earlier this week.
The total figure has raised eyebrows among some in the community who agree with Lezama-Clark that the impact could be higher. But let’s not forget that the study is based on only 2003, a year when the parade
suffered, as it had in the two years before, from excessive rain and alcohol remained banned on the Parkway, a legacy of the Rudy Giuliani regime.
Despite what we may feel, the study is definitely a great start, and the 12 recommendations are right on the money. Now, we need to ask the question – what will WIADCA organizers do with the study?
Lezama-Clark says the study will now be used to aggressively market the carnival to major companies, such as Home Depot, where many costume makers and pannists buy items to make the finished products. But what of the recommendations? Will we see them implemented over the year? Will the study now be used to get more funding and support from the city and state? And most importantly, will we hear about the West Indian American Carnival over the next fiscal year, now that the Labor Day celebrations are over for 2004?
These are all questions that need to be answered, especially now that the bacchanal is over, and we won’t
see the politicians posturing and trying to catch the spotlight until next Labor Day.
After close to four decades of existence, we deserve a lot more. Organizers must try to hold these politicians' feet to the fire and find out exactly what they can do for the carnival and the community before they are entertained and given the spotlight at this celebration?
Will Mike Bloomberg, who marched in the parade, step in to get more funding for the event or push the city’s tourism office to partner with
organizers? And what about the costumes and the mas makers and a permanent place for them to promote a year-round awareness of the festival?
This is the time for organizers to step up and flaunt the power of this study in the face of city politicians. Enough with the hand-shaking and picture taking. The fact that a carnival of this magnitude can only attract less than $400,000 in annual sponsorship is shameful.
The strategy and those implementing these plans need to change and new diverse blood brought in to take the event to a new level – a level where the community is not just viewed as one that, to quote a recent television announcer – “knows how to party” – but one whose economic and political strength is recognized by all, all year
round.
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