Just last year there was the AFRAM festival in August of 2018. For a second year in a row, there is a slimmed-down version of the 42-year-old festival that has been held in Druid Hill Park. Mayor Catherine Pugh decided to move the festival away from downtown in 2017 as a cost saving measure. She also felt it best to cut the event temporarily from two days to one and featured exclusively local acts instead of the national headliners AFRAM had showcased in the past. The most recent choices in entertainment and location has contributed to controversy amongst Baltimoreans in Black communities who take pride in the festival. Mayor Pugh's reason's for this were because of budget cuts.
When it was first scaled down to two days in 2017, Mayor Pugh expressed her opinions openly and "estimated between 3,000 and 4,000 people had come through the festival as of about 3 p.m. In previous years, the festival had drawn 200,000 people and created an economic impact of $20 million for the city, according to greiBo Entertainment, the firm that previously helped stage the festival. Last year the company was paid $535,000 to help operate the event, but the city managed the event this year and spent about $200,000, according to the mayor's office." (Journalists have speculated the amount to $200,000-$339,000) Luke Broadwater wrote in Baltimore Sun, the number to be "339,000 as the city canceled a $535,000 deal with the private vendor who ran the festival".
Although Mayor Pugh's motivation to cut the festival was financial, it lead to some discontent. City Councilman Brandon Scott he expressed frustration in a hearing in 2018, "A festival that had 100,000 people per day, we're now expecting 20,000 a day," Scott asked. "Why does this festival have to be smaller? ... It's the black people that are getting the short end of the stick."A Baltimore Magazine article written by Michelle Evans spoke towards the backlash from people in response to Mayor Pugh's changes to the festival. She highlighted some individuals commentary such as a Facebook user who mentioned “In a city that's mostly African American, the African-American festival is the only one to be dwindled down to save money,” a Facebook user commented. “What sense does that make? What does it say to our children about who and what this city values?” It is interesting to speculate why this festival is set apart from how other local events are organized and handled. As Evans points out, "unlike other local events like Pride and Artscape, the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts (BoPA) has no role in AFRAM—the mayor’s office handles all planning and promotion". Pride and Artscape also happen to be events that have not been cut but are a three-day events.
Fern Shen who wrote this article that contains fully developed perspectives towards Mayor Pugh's decisions in cutting AFRAM Festival. Shen mentioned how some felt the changes of the location to be of an effect on the audience size from lack of transportation. As Shen said, "Compared to the availability of bus and Light Rail at Camden Yards, transit options near the Park are fewer and less convenient, many also said". It is hard to know how AFRAM will be in the future and why a city that is predominantly black, that organizes a festival centered towards the black community, there is still this need for "a safe alternative space for the black community to gather". Maybe it is a coincidence AFRAM has battled with constant change over the years or there are deeper rooted issues of race and integration that come into play.
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