They’re payaso protestors.
Dozens of clowns in full face paint, red noses and comically large shoes marched to Bolivia’s Ministry of Education in La Paz on Monday to protest an education decree they say is killing their livelihood.
The clowns took to the streets to protest a new Bolivian government mandate requiring schools to hit 200 instructional days per year, effectively banning the school festivals where clowns are regularly hired to perform.
The leader of the local clown union, Wilder Ramirez, who goes by the stage name “Zapallito,” told reporters that “children need to laugh,” while his red-nosed colleagues ruminated on whether Bolivia’s Education Minister ever had a childhood, according to the Associated Press.
Tailors, photographers, and costume makers joined the march through central La Paz, blowing whistles and setting off fireworks.
“This decree will diminish our income, and with the economic crisis the country is going through, our future looks increasingly gloomy,” said Elías Gutiérrez, a representative of the Confederation of Artisanal Workers of Bolivia.
One clown carried a sign accusing the government of “taking away smiles, and taking work away.”
The government says it’ll consider the clowns’ feedback for next year’s decree.
Bolivia is in its worst economic crisis in decades, largely caused by fuel subsidies and a longterm decline in natural gas production.
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