#RedAlertRESTART

Since the start of the pandemic, the arts and entertainment industries have been struggling to keep their services operating. The live events industry encompasses over 12 million people and has an economic impact of over $1 trillion annually to the US economy. Across the country, thousands of events and live performances have been cancelled. 77% of the people in the industry have lost their entire income and 96% of companies have cut staff.

It is an understatement to say that the live entertainment industry is in a crisis mode. On September 1, the Lyric Stage and thousands of other industry professionals will illuminate their venues and spaces red across North America as part of the  event. The #RedAlertRESTART event is part of the #WeMakeEvents campaign, which is a coalition of trade bodies, businesses, unions, and live event workers. The goal is to raise awareness of the importance of live events and entertainment, as well as to create congressional pressure to act now.

#WeMakeEvents is asking Congress to act on the Restart Act, which would bring financial aid to those in the live events industry impacted by the prolonged shutdown. The Restart Act also supports the efforts of ExtendPUA.org, which would extend and expand federal employment benefits under the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program. Visit https://wemakeevents.org/ for more information about the campaign.