Notting Hill Carnival Canceled For The First Time Due to COVID-19

Summer festivity Notting Hill Carnival canceled for the first time in its 54-year-history because of coronavirus concerns, the organizers announced.

On the event website, a statement is posted "on behalf of the board of Notting Hill Carnival Ltd." The statement said that the Notting Hill Carnival (NHC) was among the events around the world affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. It also said that after consulting their strategic partners and the Advisory Council, the NHC Board has decided not to push through wih the event, its first in its history.

The announcement also mentioned that the annual steelband event, "Panorama," will be canceled as well.

While the highly-anticipated summer event was canceled, the statement said that the organizers are working towards an alternative, noting that NHC was originally founded to "bring people together during trying times."

The statement also admitted that while it was not an easy decision, the pandemic has left the organizers with cancelation as the only option. "Everyone's health has to come first."

NHC has also expressed their "utmost respect, admiration and gratitude for their work," adding that the decision also included the organizers' wish not to further trouble their colleagues at St. John Ambulance and the National Health Service.

"We look forward to welcoming you back to the streets of Notting Hill in 2021," the statement concluded.

The Notting Hill Carnival is a street carnival annually held on Kensington's Notting Hill area. The festivity is often led by members of the British West Indian community, with NHC being a landmark event for the Black British people.

Organizers have been under pressure to postpone or cancel the event due to the health crisis. British news publication The Independent reported that the local council of Kensington and Chelsea warning of the health risks with continuing the event.

NHC 2020 followed other world-renowned events canceled or postponed due to the global coronavirus pandemic. Music events Coachella and Stagecoach were postponed in their respective March 10 announcements, being moved to later dates in the year.

A week later, on March 18, the biennial classical music competition Eurovision Young Musicians 2020 followed suit with the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in France being postponed the following day.

The global coronavirus pandemic has also affected the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, The Burning Man Festival, the 74th Annual Tony Awards, the latest NBA season, and global professional leagues for e-sports games such as "League of Legends," "Overwatch," "Defense of the Ancients (DOTA) 2," "Counter-Strike," and more.

In the United States alone, more than 26 million Americans have filed for unemployment because of the coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 has already infected 1.2 million people in the country, resulting in over 70,000 fatalities. The US Government has already put into action the largest stimulus bill in history - a $2 trillion "Coronavirus Stimulus Bill" to keep the country afloat and the economy running in the middle of the crisis. The bill plans to offer loans and grants to affected citizens, including workers in the music industry such as songwriters and musicians not under major labels, concert and performance crews, and more.