We need sanitary protocols!
It seems like years ago when I reread this, but then we realize it’s only been a couple of years.
The protesters were amicably chatting with their tango signs in groups of 2 or 3 people. All wore masks and observed social distancing
Reading the handwritten paper Tango protest signs with the messages:
We have not danced in a year.
Tango is a culture. Tango is our work.
Mostly the protest signs in Spanish read:
We need to return to work.
We need to return to dance.
The organized tango protesters spoke to the city government and said…
We NEED the government of BsAs to specify what protocols are needed for the tango world to be in place. We need to go back to work. We have not worked in a year. We are culture. We are Buenos Aires.
Tango Protest
The protest lasted about an hour. Tango music played on the sound system. The protesters demonstrated a few different dance stances. No actual dancing occurred. Many photographers and media outlets showed up. In the Buenos Aires Times, nothing has shown up about the protest. It’s the only English language paper here. Will research and see if any other papers have any mention.
This is an important issue in Buenos Aires, as many teachers, organizers, performers, and students await a return to Tango. Honestly, expecting the old normal ways now is not important. What is important is to return to dancing Tango.
Currently, there are many outdoor milongas around the city in various parks, somewhat sanctioned as all observe sanitary protocols, including wearing masks and using lots of hand sanitizers.
Many tango dancers do not like dancing in open embrace, as many feel, including me, that this is not tango. Again and again, the most important issue is the government’s issue of sanitary protocols. Return to the embrace again. To hear the tango music streaming into the clubs and spaces of Buenos Aires.
Now we wait. We see if something happens.
