New York's largest-ever festival of art and music from across the Muslim world, Muslim Voices: Arts & Ideas, closed this past weekend. The event featured over three hundred artists, including dancers, singers, drummers, oud players, actors, directors, filmmakers-- the gamut, with individuals arriving from as far away as Indonesia and as nearby as Brooklyn.
Full disclosure: I produced the website for the festival. But this is no blind plug. Over the period of time I worked on this project, it seemed in some big and little ways that minds opened, thoughts changed, hearts quickened. The capacity of the arts to serve as cultural diplomat, what festival organizers described as its "unique power", came through in a big way. Edward Said has termed this "art's refusal to bear the ideological message." In the halls, and in the theaters, everyone is welcome. (For more on that and more of what Said had to say about the culture-politics link in general, see his last and unfinished book, On Late Style: Music and Literature Against the Grain.)
Senegalese musician Youssou N'Dour kicked off the festival with a packed-out concert at BAM. The evening opened with comments from New York Mayor Bloomberg, and later concluded with a private reception at the cultural venue.
Listen in on the audio report below for more on the power, and the promise, of what the arts can achieve when people come together.
Everyone has heard of Bono, the Irish rocker and ubiquitous celebrity spokesperson of All Things Developing World. But many other musicians have made quiet cultural diplomacy a touchstone of their careers. Whether by representing their culture on the international stage or penetrating closed borders to promote cross-cultural exchange, these five industry players are proof that, as American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once said, “Music is the universal language of mankind.”
Miriam Makeba
When this South African singer died in November 2008 at the age 85, the entire world mourned the passing of “Mama Africa”. The Grammy-award winning artist’s upbeat but haunting sounds fused the rhythms of her country’s townships with American jazz and folk––a musical style that both celebrated her culture and brought its struggles to international attention. "[People call me] a political singer,” she once said. “I don't know what the word means. People think I consciously decided to tell the world what was happening in South Africa. No! I was singing about my life, and in South Africa we always sang about what was happening to us––especially the things that hurt us." CHECK OUT The Very Best of Miriam Makeba (Manteca, 2001); $12
Manu Chao
47-year-old Manu Chao’s childhood as the son of Spanish intellectuals escaping dictatorship in Paris clearly influenced his career as a musician. The multicultural musician’s quirky, up-tempo 2000 debut solo album incorporated no fewer than five languages (French, Spanish, Portuguese, Basque, and English), featured influences from the Caribbean, South America, Mexico, and Europe, and advocated for such sidelined political movements as Mexico’s Zapatistas. His 2004 collaboration with the blind Malean musicians Amadou et Mariam cemented Manu Chao’s reputation as musical polyglot whose passion for breaking musical and cultural boundaries knows no bounds. CHECK OUT Proxima Estacion: Esperanza (Virgin, 2001); $7
In the YouTube clip below, check out Andy Palacio's video of Watina, the song hailed by the New York Times as responsible for "stimulating a rediscovery of Garifuna music among younger musicians in Central America."
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Modiba Productions
Our mission is to use the best in new music from around the world to drive positive political change and social empowerment for the people and communities from which the music comes,” says Eric Herman, the 26-year-old CEO of Modiba, a New York City record label whose artists hail from as far-flung parts as Sierra Leone, Mali, and Brazil. “Music has the unique ability to touch people on a primal and universal level. As such, musicians often refer to music as a language without borders. Rhythm and vibration are at the foundation of us all both biologically and spiritually. We can therefore communicate with them in profound and yet simple ways across the entire human landscape.” CHECK OUT www.modiba.net
Andy Palacio
Central America’s small Garifuna community—600,000 people who are primarily descendants of African slaves and South American Caribs now living along the Caribbean coast of the Isthmus—has enjoyed a lively presence in the Belizean pop music scene. But in 1987, a very young Andy Palacio took the Garifuna’s traditional music global. Performing through the ‘90s at festivals in Mexico, Belgium, Japan, and the United States, this charismatic, multi-lingual guitarist and singer became the unofficial diplomat of his endangered culture. In 2004 he was appointed Cultural Ambassador of Belize, a position he used to promote and preserve Garifuna music and culture. Palacio died unexpectedly in 2008 at the age of 47, but his legacy lives on. CHECK OUT Watina (Cumbancha, 2007); $16
Lorin Maazel
“I have always believed that the arts, per se, and their exponents, artists, have a broader role to play in the public arena,” wrote Lorin Maazel the director of the New York Philharmonic in the Wall Street Journal before his orchestra would travel to Pyongyang, North Korea, to give its groundbreaking 2008 performance. The director, who retires at the end of this season from the orchestra but will continue to lead the Opera House in Valencia, Spain, understood the deeper implications of their visit. Maazel expressed his enthusiasm for the trip while adding, “But it must be totally apolitical, nonpartisan and free of issue-specific agendas. It is a role of the highest possible order: bringing peoples and their cultures together on common ground, where the roots of peaceful interchange can imperceptibly but irrevocably take hold.” CHECK OUT The Pyongyang Concert DVD (New York Philharmonic); $24.99.
In a recent intimate gathering at New York’s Carnegie Council, Dr. Victor Cha, former Director for Asian Affairs in the White House National Security Council and Director of the Asian Studies program at Georgetown University, addressed perhaps the toughest negotiation in the world: the ongoing dispute with North Korea over its weapons program. Parsing the subject into three simple categories– causes, motivations and ways to go forward– Dr. Cha shined a light on this otherwise unpredictable nation, where much recent muscle-flexinghas pushed the DPRK to the top tier of US security concerns.
North Korea’s recent arrest of two American journalists, now sentenced to twelve years of hard labor, adds greater complications to the delicate negotiation process, what the New York Times pits as Obama’s tough choice between humanitarian and political rounds of tit for tat diplomacy. Amnesty International has plainly stated their case for release, while the widely reported murky circumstances of the March 17 arrest further complicate matters. One of the journalists, Laura Ling, is the sister of Lisa Ling, a still more famous correspondent for National Geographic. The usual pithy posts on Lisa’s blog have ground to a halt, while members of the public duke out the fate of her sister on the comments page. Not pretty.
A closer look at North Korea's recent behavior is warranted: blaming US policy for North Korean hostilities is no longer valid, both in light of Bush's last minute deal with North Korea, and the current administration's 'open-handed' willingness to participate in high-level negotiations
Meanwhile, the question of 'what North Korea wants' has confounded policy analysts for years. What North Korea has is not much in dispute: the country has more than adequately demonstrated its nuclear capabilities and what it has in stock for energy production could easily be turned toward weaponry. Even small diversions from civilian stocks can be militarily useful. According to recent studies published by the Washington-based Nonproliferation Policy Education Centre, such cheating is hard to detect. And, problematically, Dr. Cha explained, many of the things people claim North Korea desires have already been offered. And the two things that North Korea are really after, according to Cha, the US can't give them.
What are those two things you ask? 1) Becoming a nuclear state, and 2) acquiring an agreement with the US similar to the one India got in October 2008. Ironically, Cha speculated, that once given that status, DPRK would likely engage in negotiations toward mutual nuclear reductions. Necessarily, a portion of their program would have to be left unmonitored and, hence, effective as deterrence. Unsurprising, such a concession would be nearly impossible for the US as it would open up the possibility for nuclear proliferation in the region– not to mention undermining US efforts with Iran and others.
The second and equally impossible item on North Korea's wish list, according to Dr. Cha, is an enhanced security agreement with the international community. The US has already issued tricky negative security assurances to North Korea, the most notable of which occurred in 2005 during the Six-Party Talks, when the US stated that it would not attack North Korea unless provoked (though just what constitutes ‘provocation’ is ripe for dispute all on its own). Despite the significance of this overture, it did not address North Korea's concern over regime security. Namely, if North Korea were to open itself up for reform, it would still require international support to survive. In light of North Korea's human rights record, such external backing is unlikely.
Given this deadlock, Dr. Cha struggled to find "good options". The proximity of neighboring South Korea rules out any military intervention. North Korea has stated that any transport sanctions or inspections of suspicious cargo at sea would constitute an act of war.
The remaining possibilities are neither comprehensive nor guaranteed to work. In the past, financial sanctions have proven somewhat effective in penalizing the North Korean elite. The US could also work with various port countries to increase customs inspections, or persuade China and Russia to restrict their airspace.
China, indeed. Beijing claims to have little influence on the peninsula. Yet, in reality, it has both material influence and access to the leadership, making it the most critical player moving forward. However, any pressure from China would have to be exerted covertly as to avoid appearing a "lackey" of the West, as Dr. Cha has overheard the North Koreans previously chiding their Beijing counterparts.
In the end, Dr. Cha bleakly stated "nuclear non-proliferation is under assault". The recent emergence of North Korea's potential alliances with Syria only makes the threat more dire. Not one to mince words, Secretary Gates recently declared "the transfer of nuclear weapons or material by North Korea to states or non-state entities would be considered a grave threat to the United States and our allies."
The current leadership transition occurring between Kim Jong-il and his youngest son leaves the future even more uncertain. On paper, this instability is the perfect condition for radical change. However, as Dr. Cha stated, internal "fluidity" often manifests in external belligerence.
As a testament to how little we know about the DPRK, the international community remains uncertain about this leadership transition–– whether it is "smoke before or after a fire," as Cha so eloquently put it. The same could be said about North Korea's erratic behavior. Signs of more to come–– or the last cries of a faltering dictator?
Our June 2 salon, The Persian Paradox: Understanding Iran and its People, proved a bustling, gregarious evening with leading pundits and professionals from across the Iranian American community-- and well beyond. Early evening light streamed through the Victorian-era windows of New York's Norwood Club, as guests milled about with glasses of wine and champagne.
Hossein Khiabanian, a scientist completing his post-doc work in genetics at Columbia, leaned against a wall with his friend and fellow Iranian-born brain Huss Banai, a doctoral candidate in Political Science at Brown University. Not far away, Atossa Leoni, the lead actress in The Kite Runner and dear friend of Shohreh Aghdashloo, sipped a glass with Sudhir Kandula, a software entrepreneur and restaurant investor. Leoni recounted some of her recent projects.
“I read for Three Cups of Tea and A Thousand Splendid Suns,” the actress said, referring to her recently completed audio book projects. “I define myself as a global nomad,” Leoni continued, tipping back her glass. “This is a great way to connect with other like-minded people.”
Newsweek foreign editor Nisid Hajari called the evening to order, sitting down with Hooman Majd, author of the “The Ayatollah Begs to Differ” to discuss the current political landscape in Iran just ten days before the June 12th elections. “I don’t like hyphenated names,” opened Majd, still jetlagged from his Saturday flight back to the United States. “Over there I am Iranian, over here I am American.”
Majd wasted no time delving into Iran’s current political landscape. Most recent developments include the increasing power of candidate Hussein Moussavi’s once-wan campaign, which came to fill a stadium with 25,000 people just two days prior to his speech. The candidate, billed as the greatest threat to incumbent Ahmadinejad, has found strong support among the nation’s youth (75 percent of Iran’s 70 million people are under 30).
During elections, the Iranian government has typically eased social restrictions, leading to boisterous scenes of “partying” in the streets of Tehran: “Green fingernails and green-painted faces, dancing, shouting, signs for Moussavi… there are currently only two billboards advertising for Ahmadinejad, hundreds for the other candidates,” Majd said. “This time is extremely crucial to the elections in Iran.”
When asked how important normalizing relations with the U.S. is to Iranian citizens, Majd responded it is “second” priority given Iran’s having accustomed itself to thirty years of U.S. multilateral and unilateral sanctioning, which has given rise to a cash-only society void of foreign investment and a low 20% GDP from oil (compared to Saudi Arabia’s 80% GDP from oil). “Iran could save General Motors,” Majd joked. “But that’s not going to happen.”
As the floor opened up to more questions from the audience, talk of Iran’s human rights situation spurred brief reflection on journalist Roxana Saberi’s recent release, likely the result of “media and international pressures,” said Majd.
The turbulent issue on how much money Iran puts into nuclear and scientific research arose toward the end of the discussion. Majd denied that there was nuclear funding of any sort. “There are no 747’s or nuclear submarines but technologically speaking there is a lot of effort.” Iran is surprisingly the number one country for stem cell research and for conducting transsexual operations, he noted, continuing to emphasize the widespread access to satellite T.V, internet blogs and programming.
The night closed out with a brief performance by Iranian singer Haale, who delivered enchanting Farsi verses. My particular favorite was “Off-Duty Fortune Teller,” in which Haale sang: “When the fortune teller stops looking into the future, she breathes and checks out the river and realizes that’s where it’s at.”
Ishani described her work as the founder of the Journalist Connection, an organization that seeks to train and support independent journalists in conflict situations. “I’ve worked in this field a lot in Afghanistan and Iraq,” Ishani said.
“They weren’t looking to become journalists but I found them,” she joked. “I went into their schools and classrooms and just said, ‘which one of you can speak English? Who knows how to work a computer?’ Sometimes, that's what it takes." When asked if she had set up shop in Iran yet, Ishani smiled. "That's high on my list."
For the last few weeks a certain colour has been seeping into the fabric of the city, turning public space into a political arena. Green was never without meaning in the Islamic Republic of Iran. It was always the colour of the Shiite Imams, the colour of the silk sashes that old village elders would wear around their waists on the way to the mosque. Green was always the background of the banners and flags that characterized the mourning ceremonies of Ashura.
It can’t have been more than a month ago that the bright young things of the Mir Hossein Mousavi presidential campaign adopted green as their team colour. First came the simple green ribbons that supporters could buy from any flower stall on Valiasr Street. Then the marketing machine kicked in and soon ‘Mir Hossein Green’ accessories became essential reformist fashion gear.
Green headscarves, headbands, t-shirts for the boys, and stamped rubber bracelets. These days it seems one can’t see green without wondering, “is that green for Mousavi or is that just green?”
It had even gotten to the point that I’d put away the green coat I had purchased at the beginning of the spring in the interests of journalistic impartiality. Too many young lads with green ribbons round their wrists were winking at me in the streets. I even heard disapproving whispers behind my back at a rally in support of current president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
There are voices in the current government who are criticizing this new trend as too visible a display of political partisanship, a sensitive issue in a country where people usually seek to keep their allegiances to themselves.
I have spoken to plenty of Iranians who remember the atmosphere that carried former president Mohammad Khatami to a landslide victory in 1997. Few would deny that this year too, the election has created a wave of excitement and hope. This year however, color has crystallized the zeal for reform and given it a banner to unite under.
Ever since Ahmadinejad won the elections in 2005, I never experienced political debate except behind closed doors with jaded journalists and over-nostalgic uncles. Now, young reform-minded Iranians are no longer waiting for permission to participate in political debate. For the remaining few days until Iran goes to the polls on June 12, green will be their license to take their political agenda onto the streets.
Capucine Kermani is a Tehran-based journalist specializing in Iran politics and society.
In the run-up to Iran's June 12 elections, JANERA.com gathered Global Nomads at the Norwood Club for an exploration of what's at stake, and what's next.
