An amazing evening of music, hosted by Mr Gay South Africa ™ 2011 finalist AleXander Steyn, titled Artists Against Hate Speech was held at Thaba Ya Batswana on Wednesday 9 November 2011. The serenity of the scenic venue opposite the Klipriviersberg Nature Reserve in Johannesburg South matched the event’s inherent message of love and peace.
Master of Ceremonies for the evening was Samantha Cowen from 94.7 Highveld Stereo. The line-up featured poignant performances by NX, The Brunettes, aleXander Steyn, Andre Smuts, Belinda van Zwijndrecht, Tessa Denton, Ferdi & Dihan, Ansua and E3N.
The event was organised by AleXander as a fundraiser for the South African Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (SA GLAAD) to promote an environment of respect for human rights and equality.
“My wish is to put together a variety concert for this cause, to make people aware of what our rainbow nation needs – peace, love and respect for all races, genders and sexualities,” said AleXander just before the event.
“Many artists throughout the years, from Live Aid onwards have used their unique status to promote causes such as famine-prevention, human rights advancement; to advocate for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi or to work for a more just society,” said Cobus Fourie of SA GLAAD.
“The current state of public discourse in South Africa especially regarding freedom of speech has been pushed in an unfortunate direction and the public has to be made aware that rights need to be constantly and jealously guarded. Jefferson famously said that the price of liberty is eternal vigilance,” Fourie continued.
[picture: copyright aleXander Steyn 2011]
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