Hip-hop concert to raise awareness about Guatemalan labor issues
December 5, 2007
Thursday night hip-hop will take center stage in a concert to raise awareness about labor unions in Guatemala.
The concert is being put on by CHID 496 [HTML_REMOVED] Exploring Human Rights Through Music and Dance. The concert will last from 7 p.m. until 10 p.m. in the HUB North Den. The event is free, and the show features a lineup of local artists.
Abyssinian Creole, Rudy and the Rhetoric, Sista Hailstorm, Hep D MC and DJ Pedro Palooze, as well as several break dancers, are all slated to perform.
Veryl Pow, one of the students who organized the focus group and the event, said this concert provides a great blend of contemporary music and human rights awareness.
"I think the artists we've selected provide a perfect blend of socially conscious lyrics with contemporary musical talent," he said. "We're using this backdrop to complement some awareness raising for the human rights situation, particularly the situation of lack of labor rights and unions in Guatemala."
The inspiration for the focus group, entitled Exploring Human Rights Through Music and Dance, came when Pow and Nick Wong, the other organizer, studied abroad in Guatemala.
"While studying abroad, I came up with the idea that it would be cool to raise awareness among the musical community in Seattle about the human rights violations occurring in Guatemala," he said.
The event Thursday is free, but donations are strongly encouraged. There will also be a CD for sale that is a compilation of the various performers from that evening. Proceeds will go toward Guatemalan labor unions.
Ashley Howisey, a student in the class, said everyone should come out because it is going to be a great show.
"It's Thursday night; it's a good night to come out," she said. "You can be entertained while being educated about global human rights."
Pow and Howisey both want to see a lot of people show up because the event is not only going to provide entertainment, but people will be learning about a global issue.
"It's awesome to enjoy yourself," Howisey said, "and at same time give off an awareness and to see what's going on around the community."
[Reach reporter Shannon O'Hara at news@thedaily.washington.edu.]
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