Nassau, Bahamas - Local leaders are joining forces
with traditional, hip hop, reggae, contemporary gospel and other entertainers
to fight an epidemic of what they say is “shocking” criminal activity.
Artist from around the country have volunteered their talent to assist
this message. Artist including: Ronnie Butler, Kenyatta Taylor, Ricardo
Clark and Sammie Star to name four.
It’s all part of the
Artists
4 Peace movement, which is a nationwide effort to curb crime in
our communities. The goal of the
Artists 4 Peace Concert, set
for September 19 at Arawak Cay, is to promote the ideas of peace through
the power of performance art.
When considering the cost of
crime a spokesperson said: “There’s a social impact because you
look upon your neighbors as strangers and enemies. And, there’s an
economic impact because death has a cost.”
National statistics concerning
crime over the past six month are alarming: 25% increase in murder;
12% increase in arm robberies and 29% increase in robberies.
As one absorbs that these statistics
represent devastated lives, families and dreams it is evident that society
must promote the message of non-violence. In the national crime environment,
no one can afford to operate as a single agency or as a single organization.
Collaborative partnerships need to be entered into to combat the challenges
of modern-day crime
Our police force needs strong
partnership with its new
4 Point Crime
Reduction Plan.
Artist 4 Peace Concert seeks to create an
alliance to better fight crime and streamline public support against
crime.
The Fort Charlotte Community
Centre, Sea Grape Festival, and FamFest coordinator Mark Cartwright
are key coordinators for the concert.
artists
4 PEACE
In association with serious
minded people, institutions and organizations
Our world is a
dangerous place to live,
Not because of the
people who are evil,
but because of the
people who don’t do anything about it.
--
Albert Instine
our message
The message is simple: to promote the
ideas of peace through the power of performance art. We believe that all individuals are
created equal and through our efforts we hope to create a scene of positive
minded people to help bring forth action and education in the process of
sharing ideas of peace and practical uses of peace in everyday life. Thank you
for supporting
ARTISTS FOR PEACE.
Peace is not merely a
distant goal that we seek,
but a means by which
we arrive at that goal.
--Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
about
artist 4 PEACE
As societies become increasingly
aggressive, we need alternative visions of what it means to coexist, interact,
live and learn in community with each other.
artists 4 PEACE initiative seeks to imagine a future that celebrates
Bahamian culture including the plentitude and diversity of the world’s cultures
with three major objectives:
Focusing
on our shared
human interest in peace, equality and justice and providing fora in which
the arts may develop expressive vocabularies for the social and political
issues affecting our communities.
Creating spaces in which literary, visual
and performing artists can acknowledge difference and advocate creative,
nonviolent conflict resolution by engaging with each other and audiences,
especially young people.
Fostering new artistic directions and
endeavours, renewing our commitment to understanding each other and to
global peace and justice.
Relying on the arts as a platform for
social innovation and peace education, in order to inspire hope and build
bridges across cultures.
Purpose
for Artists 4 Peace
The concert seeks to:
∙∙
Utilize the power of the arts to empower youth and heal the
wounds caused by
community
violence and social injustice;
∙∙
Engage in a non-violence dialogue through the medium of the arts;
∙∙ Feature
expression of peace, love and coexistence through performance art;
∙∙ Encourage non
violence throughout the Bahamas:
∙∙ Transform anxiety
about the current situation in the Bahamas into positive manifestations for
peace;
∙∙ Platform the
transformative power of music and the arts:
∙∙ Initiation of
individualistic commitment to peace, connection empowerment and
renewal;
∙∙ Communicate
positive change for the Bahamas.
artist 4 PEACE concerts and
artists 4 PEACE Rush Out
Poetry, drama, the visual arts
including music are powerful ways of expressing feelings and ideas. Besides
spreading the message of peace, the events also feature Bahamian culture. The
concert is proposed for September 19, 2009, Arawak Cay.
just a
note
In 1982, the UN began observing “Peace
Day” every September at the opening of its General Assembly. In 2002, it
officially declared
September 21 as a permanent date for the
International
Day of Peace.