OPINION | Creators of art provide essential services and should be treated as such!

It's hard to deny that life would be horrible without art. But today, amid a global pandemic, the first in my lifetime, artists and freelance creatives in particular have seemingly been overlooked.

It has been the most heartbreaking thing for me to watch.

Literally everybody's reaction once the national lockdown commenced was to update their streaming services so they could watch TV shows, documentaries, series, and films. People updated their subscriptions so they could listen to music “to keep them sane”.

Almost every expression of art has seen more eyes since people have been instructed to stay at home in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19. In these uncertain and risky times, people have found joy and solace the arts — but artists and entertainers have nothing to show for it.

Instead, all the rebels who didn't listen to their parents when they advised them to pursue “safe and steady careers” (otherwise known as artists) have been getting the worst treatment from almost everybody that should be helping them keep their careers alive in this crisis.

Artists and other freelance creatives are struggling, stressed, financially strained and alone.

They can't earn a living as there's no gigs, yet they're being asked to work for free left, right and centre. They are still targets for internet trolls and on top of all that, they aren't even “allowed” to be vulnerable and tell people they are broke and struggling, because “they are supposed to be rich mos!”

The department of arts & culture has implemented plans to help alleviate the damage to the industry. But it hasn't been without it's flaws. Over 40 days since the official national lockdown began, most artists still have no idea if their applications were rejected, approved or if they even qualify for that aid.

The bigger issue for me has been in relation to creative freelancers and the so-called “independent contractors”.

I was shooketh after I saw a clip of the minister of employment and labour Thulas Nxesi where he said the issue of freelancers still needed to be debated and that attempting to do anything for them at the moment would be “illegal”.

“Unfortunately, with the current legislation, they fall outside. We can't do something illegal. Maybe what we are going to do is after this, we'll have to relook at it in terms of our legislative amendment and start a debate about that,” he said.

I'm literally laughing in disbelief as I read this quote again because freelancers need to wait until AFTER a pandemic to get help. Not after level 4 or after 6 months, not right now as they face an uncertain future, nope — after Covid-19 is gone.

In case you don't know, these people are actors, camera operators, make-up artists, video editors, lighting technicians, location scouts, craft services and many more in specialised jobs within the industry.

These tax-paying citizens apparently deserve NO income relief.

Artists — particularly actors — have spoken up many times and even mobilised to help fix their industry so that every contributor would be protected should a disaster rock the world. Petitions, discussion forums, even speeches in the government have been “blown off” like peoples' lives aren't affected by the issues raised.

Over the weekend, chairman of the South African Guild of Actors (Saga) Jack Devnaraian told eNCA in an interview: "It's a blatant and unforgivable oversight by the government to have an entire sector of tax-paying people who work within the industry — who are simply left to their own devices — hoping that something will drop from the heavens above.”

It feels like a slap in the face because most people have artists and their art to thank for their daily inspiration, aspirations, and even their sanity. The powers that be really ought to be ashamed that they benefit from these people (tax), claim them when they win international accolades (Oscar, BET, Grammy wins, etc) and yet treat them like their jobs are just hobbies when a crisis arises.

Kubi because the once-looming disaster is already here and artists have nobody (except themselves) and no legislation to save them. This pandemic has no set timeline, it might “end” in December or only in 2021.

And yet there's no saviour in sight for your faves — just vibes!