By Kate BernotPLAY Writer
Want to help victims of the ongoing genocide in Darfur? You could hand out a few fliers, sign a couple of online petitions, maybe attend a rally or two. Or you could organize a 20-city hip-hop tour, raising over $50,000 in the process. That’s what Alexander Hallet decided to do.
Hallet, a senior at Chapman College in California, created the Save Darfur Tour as a response to what the United Nations has called “the largest and most complex humanitarian problem on the globe.” The tour, featuring 20 hip-hop and rap artists such as Copywrite, Ohmega Watts, and Freestyle, comes to Chicago’s Abbey Pub (3420 W. Grace St.), Jan. 21.
Hallet, who goes by his stage name, Alexipharmic, is the headlining artist on the tour. His socially conscious hip-hop addresses complex issues of genocide, media bias and economic struggle. He says he considers music to be one the most effective mediums to encourage awareness and initiate change.
“As far as hip-hop goes, you can condense such a huge message in four minutes and people can listen to it over and over on their iPod,” Alexipharmic says. “Music in general can be revolutionary. It’s just something that’s appealing to people.”
The tour aims to educate the public, especially college students, about human rights abuses in Darfur, to foster compassion for victims and to raise money to benefit the Save Darfur organization. Alexipharmic says he chose Save Darfur because it has had positive results in raising public awareness of the conflict.
“They’ve contacted one million people,” says Alexipharmic. “If I can help them contact 1,000 more, maybe one of those people will have the solution.”
While fundraising is crucial to the mission of the tour, the artists are also committed to framing the Darfur genocide as a universal issue. Alexipharmic says this approach will encourage the public to take action.
“People in Darfur are human beings,” he says. “They’re just as human as my best friend or my family. The sad thing is that our country and largely the global community doesn’t recognize that.”
Though war has been raging between the Sudanese government and rebel groups since 2003, other nations and global organizations have been slow to act. Save Darfur estimates that 400,000 people have been killed and another two million have been forced to flee their homes as refugees.
Former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan expressed disappointment with international peace efforts in a speech he gave in December: “To judge by what is happening in Darfur, our performance has not improved much since the disasters of Bosnia and Rwanda,” he said.
Alexipharmic feels it is important that citizens mobilize in light of what he views as government inaction. His work on the tour began after his International Food Crisis class exposed him to news of the genocide.
“I’m not trying to sound altruistic,” Alexipharmic says. “It’s just how I’m wired. I just feel a need to do what I can to help people out.”
Though he is humble, Alexipharmic is already hearing positive feedback about his music and the tour. He’s hopeful this is the beginning of positive change.
“One person will not solve everything,” he says. “But the whole world is just a collection of individuals. We need to take accountability and stand up for what we believe in. If each individual does that, then humanity, as a collection of individuals, will be changed.”
Medill freshman Kate Bernot is a PLAY writer. She can be reached at [email protected].
