I Wonder if They Knew
Going from the thousands to the millions for each venue, not to mention the other 2 billion from around the globe watching the live feed, the crowds that gathered at the Live 8 concerts seemed to verify the impact of the concern Bob Geldof (among others) wanted to put across. The concerts simultaneously held in four different continents (with Africa jumping into the mix at the last minute) blared out that in this case, the message was as strong as the medium.
Or was it?
Airing yesterday its special on the issue of African poverty "Inside Africa", CNN brought to the attention of millions of viewers a clearer picture of the very concern for which these concerts, as well as the Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP) and other campaigns, have been fighting.
It was during a coverage of the London Live 8 concert the question of the crowd's awareness of the primary objectives of the concerts was raised. Surprisingly there were some attendees only aware of it being a free-of-charge, Woodstock-ish concert, with the biggest names in music performing. However, optimistic statements were given, saying that the course of the shows was mapped out to address the crowd about the concerns of the Live 8 campaign, and those who came to the show not knowing about the concerns, were made known of them.
*****
Africa, for which the campaign was launched, followed up with their own Live 8 conert in Johannesburg, simultaneous to the other concerts around the globe. The concert was added as a response to claims of the shortage of African performers at the shows.
"What do participating musicians know about Africa?" asked Susan Outa, a student in Nairobi. "How do we know whether half of them have even visited a single African country?"
The Johannesburg concert managed to gather up a few thousand people, which was a complete turnaround for the expected total turnout. This was mostly due to the lack of means of communication in the region; those who were able to witness what was termed "the world's biggest concert" were left puzzled by scenes of "white men with guitars." A significant number of Africans were unfamiliar even of the name Bob Geldof, and were only slightly made aware of the significance of the entire campaign.
"I don't know who Bob Geldof is," said Edward Romoki in downtown Johannesburg when asked what he thought of the man behind the concerts. "But people are speaking about poverty and there is plenty of that in Africa -- maybe a concert like this can put Africa in the news and change things."
Maxwell Shirima, a 25-year-old who makes around $5 a day selling oranges at the side of the road in Tanzania said he had no idea there were any concerts being staged to help Africa.
"I haven't heard anything about it, but anything to help us is good," he said.
The Johannesburg show was the second to kick-off the global events, with Tokyo being the first.
*****
Staged a few days before the G8 Summit and Glenseagles Hotel, Scotland to be held from July 6 to 8, Live 8 was also to kick-off The Long Walk to Justice which is meant not only to catch the attention, but pressure the leaders of the 8 most powerful nations in the world (The United States, Great Britain, Japan, Russia, Canada, France, Germany and Italy) to eliminate the debt of the poorest countries in the world, most of which are in Africa. Simultaneously, the campaign pushes for the doubling of aide, which goes hand-in-hand with the rebuilding of the nations that are on the extreme poverty line. Meant to be the masses' medium for their concerns, it was stressed to not be a follow-up to the 1985 Live Aid, which was also organized by Geldof. The campaign pushes to speak to the leaders, with the message being that the rest of the world will be waiting for them to make the right decisions.
As what has fervently been pointed out by Geldof, the Live 8 concerts were not for charity, but for justice. Other organizers of the campaign held on to their stand of the movement being about equality, and not financial aid.
To be led by British Prime Minister Tony Blair, the G8 Summit has been identified as one of the remaining (and currently the biggest) hopes for the elimination of world poverty. However there has been some pressure with the hesitation of US President George W. Bush, with him claiming that the increase of trade with Africa will be a more acceptable plan.
"The stakes for Africa at this meeting could not be higher," noted Dr. Paul Zeitz, Executive Director of the Global AIDS Alliance. "Blair should reject Bush's excuse that 'Africa cannot effectively use additional resources,' a view clearly contradicted by the latest UN assessment."
Moving more towards the awareness of the issues than being a major solution for them, Live 8 was meant to act as a battering ram at the doors of the Gleneagles Hotel, not intending to be a disruption for the G8 summit, but a constantly-screaming issue, the voice for which is that of the entire world.
*****
Every breath you take . . . we'll be watching you.
[sung by Sting during the Live 8 Philadelphia concert, directed towards the G8 leaders]
Sources:
www.alertnet.org
www.globalaidsalliance.org
live8
Or was it?
Airing yesterday its special on the issue of African poverty "Inside Africa", CNN brought to the attention of millions of viewers a clearer picture of the very concern for which these concerts, as well as the Global Call to Action against Poverty (GCAP) and other campaigns, have been fighting.
It was during a coverage of the London Live 8 concert the question of the crowd's awareness of the primary objectives of the concerts was raised. Surprisingly there were some attendees only aware of it being a free-of-charge, Woodstock-ish concert, with the biggest names in music performing. However, optimistic statements were given, saying that the course of the shows was mapped out to address the crowd about the concerns of the Live 8 campaign, and those who came to the show not knowing about the concerns, were made known of them.
Africa, for which the campaign was launched, followed up with their own Live 8 conert in Johannesburg, simultaneous to the other concerts around the globe. The concert was added as a response to claims of the shortage of African performers at the shows.
"What do participating musicians know about Africa?" asked Susan Outa, a student in Nairobi. "How do we know whether half of them have even visited a single African country?"
The Johannesburg concert managed to gather up a few thousand people, which was a complete turnaround for the expected total turnout. This was mostly due to the lack of means of communication in the region; those who were able to witness what was termed "the world's biggest concert" were left puzzled by scenes of "white men with guitars." A significant number of Africans were unfamiliar even of the name Bob Geldof, and were only slightly made aware of the significance of the entire campaign.
"I don't know who Bob Geldof is," said Edward Romoki in downtown Johannesburg when asked what he thought of the man behind the concerts. "But people are speaking about poverty and there is plenty of that in Africa -- maybe a concert like this can put Africa in the news and change things."
Maxwell Shirima, a 25-year-old who makes around $5 a day selling oranges at the side of the road in Tanzania said he had no idea there were any concerts being staged to help Africa.
"I haven't heard anything about it, but anything to help us is good," he said.
The Johannesburg show was the second to kick-off the global events, with Tokyo being the first.
Staged a few days before the G8 Summit and Glenseagles Hotel, Scotland to be held from July 6 to 8, Live 8 was also to kick-off The Long Walk to Justice which is meant not only to catch the attention, but pressure the leaders of the 8 most powerful nations in the world (The United States, Great Britain, Japan, Russia, Canada, France, Germany and Italy) to eliminate the debt of the poorest countries in the world, most of which are in Africa. Simultaneously, the campaign pushes for the doubling of aide, which goes hand-in-hand with the rebuilding of the nations that are on the extreme poverty line. Meant to be the masses' medium for their concerns, it was stressed to not be a follow-up to the 1985 Live Aid, which was also organized by Geldof. The campaign pushes to speak to the leaders, with the message being that the rest of the world will be waiting for them to make the right decisions.
As what has fervently been pointed out by Geldof, the Live 8 concerts were not for charity, but for justice. Other organizers of the campaign held on to their stand of the movement being about equality, and not financial aid.
To be led by British Prime Minister Tony Blair, the G8 Summit has been identified as one of the remaining (and currently the biggest) hopes for the elimination of world poverty. However there has been some pressure with the hesitation of US President George W. Bush, with him claiming that the increase of trade with Africa will be a more acceptable plan.
"The stakes for Africa at this meeting could not be higher," noted Dr. Paul Zeitz, Executive Director of the Global AIDS Alliance. "Blair should reject Bush's excuse that 'Africa cannot effectively use additional resources,' a view clearly contradicted by the latest UN assessment."
Moving more towards the awareness of the issues than being a major solution for them, Live 8 was meant to act as a battering ram at the doors of the Gleneagles Hotel, not intending to be a disruption for the G8 summit, but a constantly-screaming issue, the voice for which is that of the entire world.
Every breath you take . . . we'll be watching you.
[sung by Sting during the Live 8 Philadelphia concert, directed towards the G8 leaders]
Sources:
www.alertnet.org
www.globalaidsalliance.org
live8
Currently listening to: the echoes of Live 8
Currently watching: hopes soar
Currently feeling: determined
Posted by boonchee at 06:25 PM in musings, highlights | Add a Comment