#JobsSaveLives - One Million Seats on the Streets Peaceful protest.
As I am married to a restauranteur and have been involved in restaurants my entire adult life, I am very familiar with the devastating times that restaurants (worldwide) are facing due to the lockdown regulations placed on them during the pandemic. But particularly restaurants in South Africa, as we have the added difficulties of a national curfew of 21h00 and the alcohol ban, which prevents us from serving any alcohol with meals. And as it is customary for most South Africans to enjoy a glass of wine or two with their meals, people are choosing not to eat out at all. This is devastating for the restaurant and hospitality industry and it is estimated that 30% of restaurants, in South Africa, have already permanently shut their doors. (Not to mention the wine industry, breweries and any alcohol related industries, that are also being severely affected. Or even the tobacco industry, as tobacco products have been banned since the 27 March 2020)
On the 22 July, The Restaurant Association of South Africa organised a peaceful protest between 12h00 and 14h00, whereby restaurant owners and their staff were asked to place their tables and chairs out in the streets in order to bring attention to the plight that the industry finds itself in. Our restaurant At Four Cousins Restaurant took part along with some of the other restaurants in our town, Robertson.
We had amazing support from our town and the passersby who hooted their horns in solidarity as they drove pass and it turned out to be quite an emotional day for all of us involved.
As I am starting to learn how to use Da Vinci Resovle, my intention was to make video of the event. My husband (the self appointed Art Director in the project) decided that he wanted the video published by 17h00 that same day. Which left me less than 3 hours after the protest, to get home, select and edit all the photos and then turn it into a video, using a software programme that I was still learning to use. I am proud to say that I managed it with 20 minutes to spare, but it is now clear to me, why I am a product photographer and not a photojournalist. LOL
Here is the video and some other images of the day.
