COVID cancels Calle Ocho and Carnaval on the Mile. ‘Public health is the priority.’
“We look forward to dancing in the street together again in 2022.”
So says Jorge Fernandez, president of the Kiwanis Club of Little Havana, about two of Miami’s signature events.
But wait — 2022? What happened to 2021?
Sadly, the dreaded COVID-19 pandemic continues.
For the second year, Calle Ocho is canceled, the Kiwanis Club of Little Havana said Tuesday. This year, so is its related Carnaval on the Mile that is held in Coral Gables, according to Ana Maria Reyes, Kiwanis/Carnaval’s creative and promotions director.
Carnaval went on last March. But that was at the top of the novel coronavirus.
Now, in 2021, with South Florida leading the way in COVID cases and deaths — Miami-Dade, alone has had more than 5,000 deaths and 385,000 cases since the pandemic began, according to the Florida Department of Health — Carnaval has to go, too, organizers said.
“The pandemic has affected the ability to carry out our largest special event fundraising initiatives,” Fernandez said in a statement. “It is disappointing that this will be the second year in a row without a Calle Ocho Music Festival, but public health is the priority.”
Calle Ocho, which had its first street carnival in 1978, the spring when “Saturday Night Fever” set feet dancing on South Florida radio, attracts hundreds of thousands of people each year to the heart of Little Havana in March. Officials close a stretch of Southwest Eighth Street for music performances, food vendors and other activities.
The festival raises money for Kiwanis Club-sponsored social programs.
The goal this year is to find a way to continue to support the communities the Kiwanis Club of Little Havana traditionally serves despite the loss, again, of its flagship event.
According to Reyes, the Kiwanis of Little Havana Foundation provided more than 40 college scholarships, assisted more than 7,000 South Florida students with school supplies and provided more than 2,000 toys to underprivileged children during the holidays despite the loss of the 2020 event. The organization also distributed more than 30,000 meals.
“We have made a promise to the community,” Fernandez said.
Organizers expect a Carnaval on the Mile March 5-6, 2022. The next Calle Ocho Music Festival is scheduled for March 13, 2022.
This story was originally published February 9, 2021 at 1:25 PM.
