Below is an email from Christian Anderson, a great guy and committed activist, who recently put on a concert to raise awareness and funds for the Save Darfur Coalition. I worked closely with Christian to help him spread the word, find other activists in the area, and provided him ideas and merchandise. I hope you’ll take time to read this post from Christian, not only to read an account of a great event, but hopefully to also give you ideas for an event in your area.
Greetings to all fighting the good fight for Darfur! I am writing to you from Los Angeles, CA where our adjunct activist group, The Rise Up Coalition, recently produced the official Save Darfur Concert at the Knitting Factory-Hollywood on Sept 15, 2009. (www.savedarfurconcertla.com) The concert was a mad dash since we did not get confirmation of the venue until 5 weeks before date and for the bands, 3 weeks before the date. I tested the sanity of our PR team with this timetable, but we gave it our best shot and got the word out.
The focus of the night was empowerment. We wanted the concertgoer to leave motivated and inspired to change the world. Our formula was get them in the doors via a knock out, eclectic musical line-up and an open vodka bar from 7-8. We then got them in the “global” mood by dressing the venue with Save Darfur and other global activist paraphernalia: flags, banners, posters, shirts, hats, etc. We were blessed with great looking aspiring models and actors as bartenders, bar-backs, and security (this is LA, after all), and their form fitting Save Darfur shirts did not hurt sales either.
As the concert-goer moved through the space, tables were set up for Save Darfur, JWW, Stop Genocide Now, Amnesty International, and Enough!.
Our awesome representatives had petitions, information, and gear to sell. The bands started their sets with easy singer/songwriters then
escalated to funk, hip hop, reggae, and finally rock and roll. A multimedia presentation played on all the flat screens throughout the venue, including a projection screen on the stage itself which was a subtitled reel detailing all 5 organizations in attendance and how they served Darfur and the Congo. As artists like Rocky Dawuni jammed on, images of Darfurians and Congolese children played in the background. The concertgoer might have come for the music or open vodka bar, but they were enveloped in a world of activism, and invited to see the faces of those they were helping.
In between each set, our celebrity host, Todd Newton from E!, introduced a representative from each of the agencies for a quick empowerment speech about their fight to eradicate global atrocities and inviting involvement. Gabriel Stauring from Stop Genocide Now, roused a concert hall full of rockers to take out their cell phones and text Hillary Clinton “I STAND FOR THE SUDAN.” People learned how simple every day actions can aid the cause:
putting the White House on their speed dial and calling everyday or taking part in an international day of fasting for peace.
The concert goer not only heard a great line-up of music, but also listened to 5 activist organizations each take different approaches to fighting the
same fight; maybe they were attracted to the political activism of Save Darfur, or perhaps they preferred the petition signing of Amnesty International. There was something for everyone each leading to the same goal of ending these horrible atrocities.
There are a million causes out there, but how many focus on funding the individual rather than the individual funding them? If every decision we make, every band we hire, and every speaker we choose is focused on the objective of empowering the individual to change the world, then we might just reach our goal of raising the next generation of global activists. Change will not happen in Darfur or the Eastern Congo unless our political leaders are placing the right pressure upon the likes of Bashir and company. We want to do our part in helping to rise up this army of activists and lead them to every senator’s and congressman’s door. To knock and knock loudly until change in the Sudan and Congo happens.
We look forward to the next event. Rise up.
-Christian Anderson, Rise Up Coalition
www.christianandersononline.com
If you’ve got an idea for an event and would like some help in putting it on, please contact will[at]savedarfur[dot]org.
The opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Save Darfur Coalition.
Tags: Activism, California, Darfur, Events, Save Darfur
