To support the industry awareness campaign, #RedAlertRESTART, on Sept. 1, LD Matt Guminski coordinated efforts with New York regional director Kelly Easterling. In the crowded city skyline, the visual standouts included Empire State Building, Radio City Music Hall, Madison Square Garden, MetLife Stadium (NJ) and spires of the World Trade Center, among many others. But the activation of Times Square made a more compelling visual, in which 172 road cases from local companies manned by about 200 unemployed industry crew illustrated the shut down event industry. While the city couldn’t provide a permit of assembly because of Covid-19 gathering restrictions, they did give permission to “freely protest,” Guminski says. “We also got a Times Square billboard for 10 minutes to show a graphic image about RESTART.” He adds, “In our industry, we are taught that if we are doing our job right, you don’t see us. But it is time for us to come out of the shadows and be seen.”
Debi Moen, from “Designer Watch,” PLSN, Sept. 2020, page 40
