I know this will hurt a lot of people but the 2020 Essence Festival is canceled. Ouch! Look, we are trying to flatten the curve of the coronavirus and Essence brings crowds. Of course that can't work because we have been told to practice social distancing and the Mayor of New Orleans decided to propose an extended ban on large events to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Of course New Orleans has been home to the famous Essence weekend for the past 26 years. But organizers announced that the iconic festival would be canceled for this year after city officials announced and New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell recommended that no large events take place in the city for the remainder of the year. They posted up the announcement on social media saying they look forward to returning to New Orleans in 2021. But there will still be a part of Essence that will take place, just virtually. Essence announced the ESSENCE Benefit Series to Fight COVID-19 that will raise money and provide support for businesses and organizations in Black communities across the country. the virtual portion is called ESSENCE Festival of Culture: The Virtual Edition taking place over July 4th weekend as a multi-day experience and benefit celebration linked to this effort, the first ever.
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