WATCH: South Africans combat coronavirus with comedy
SCREEN grab of local comedian Carvin Goldstone. SCREEN grab of local comedian Carvin Goldstone.
Durban - IT IS said that laughter is the best medicine and it would seem that in the midst of panic across the globe, South Africans have found a therapeutic outlet for their coronavirus worries - comedy.
While there are several memes mocking people caught in the act of panic-buying and showing empty supermarket shelves, a video taken in a South African night club shows people dancing to a house song while adding the word “corona” to the lyrics.
The clubbers put one hand over their mouths, shaking the index finger on the other hand each time they shout “corona” in unison.
In similar vein, Americans have also done a song and dance routine about the virus. A video shared locally shows a group dancing to a trap song with the word “coronavirus” repeated.
At one point the singer coughs and one dancer places his hand over his mouth as the others stare at him.
Locally, comedian Carvin Goldstone garnered over 100 000 views of his video on his Facebook page, where he mocks people panicking over the virus in a one-man skit.
Goldstone is on the phone with a bottle of Dettol with a face mask over it, telling the person on the other end that he had placed himself in quarantine in his car.
“I’m not over panicking,” he says in the video.
Durban comedian Jem Atkins said he felt the country needed the jokes and memes and funny videos.
“It helps us to get a bit of perspective and not panic. Humour is a powerful tool for educating, increasing awareness, sharing knowledge and reducing panic. I also think this is our coping mechanism as South Africans,” he said.
Atkins said he believed South Africans needed to laugh or else people would be crying.
“As South Africans, our standard reaction to any sort of crisis is to make light of the situation, sharing jokes, memes and funny videos,” he said.