The Black Informant | African American Commentary, News and Community Building

Do you remember “We are the world”, “Do they know it Christmastime” and all that jazz? Well Bob Geldof once again feels the need to save Africa (I’m still trying to figure out who he is/was back in the day)

Geldof, the Irish rock singer who put together 1985′s Live Aid concert for Ethiopian drought relief, yesterday announced five free megaconcerts aimed at pressuring world leaders to forgive African debt and double humanitarian aid

The shows will be held July 2 in London, Rome, Philadelphia, Paris and Berlin, with performers including U2, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Madonna, Coldplay, Mariah Carey, 50 Cent, P.Diddy, Dave Matthews, Bon Jovi, Maroon 5, Stevie Wonder and Faith Hill.

The concerts will precede the G8 summit July 6 in Scotland with the leaders of the U.S., Britain, France, Russia, Germany, Italy, Japan and Canada.

The goal of the “Live 8″ concerts, Geldof told a news conference in London yesterday, is to force the world to see that “50,000 Africans are dying each day of preventable diseases” and to demand that leaders do something.

“We will not tolerate the further pain of the poor while we have the financial and moral means to prevent it.”

Unlike Live Aid, which raised about $200 million, Live 8 is not soliciting donations – largely because organizers feel Africa’s needs require a much larger governmental effort…more

Awwwww. How thoughtful and kind of them to do this. Now, let’s look at just how much Live Aid helped Ethiopia:

…the BBC documentary which inspired Geldof made little mention of how Mengistu exploited famine as a political weapon. His goal was to depopulate rebel-held areas by forcibly relocating hundreds of thousands of villagers from northern Ethiopia to areas in the south. Instead, the BBC’s Michael Buerk merely described Ethiopia’s situation as “biblical famine.”

Buerk knew what he was doing. As he later told Wolf, “You’ve got . . . to make the decision, is this side story of any real significance? And also, at the back of your mind, is: if I overemphasize a negative angle to this, I am going to be responsible for . . . inhibiting people from coughing up their money.” Why let facts complicate a good story?

Between the BBC documentary, other news stories, and the Live Aid concerts, nearly a billion dollars flowed into Ethiopia during the ’80s. Most of it came from various foreign governments; Geldof’s efforts represented nearly a quarter of total.

Along with the cash, thousands of western workers and journalists began to enter Ethiopia. Mengistu knew a

good thing when he saw it and used the combined tidal wave of money and sympathy to prop up his regime. He required that relief workers convert their western tender to the local currency at a rate favorable to his junta, which tripled its foreign currency reserves, allowing it to buy arms and materiel. Mengistu’s troops also commandeered aid vehicles and fed themselves on the incoming foodstuffs. As Wolf notes, “it became clear that a significant proportion of the relief food in Tigray–the epicenter of the famine–was consigned to the militia. The militias were known locally as ‘wheat militias’.”

(so in other words, these were useful idots. Ooops! Did I say that out loud?)

The money allowed Mengistu to string out his war efforts for six more years. Between starvation and outright murder, the war cost more than 100,000 Ethiopian lives.

DURING THE SHOW, The Who performed their ’70s anthem, “We Won’t Get Fooled Again.” The Boomer and MTV generations frequently forget how often they get fooled again…more

Please pay close attention to what I have bolded above. While Geldof and the gang were teaching the world to sing, Mengistu was counting the sales receipts and at the same time being responsible for the death of over 100,000 Ethiopians. ALL WHILE WE SANG!!

I have always maintained the position that the best way to help the suffering in continents like Africa is to rid it of all corrupt governments, warlords, etc–people who ultimately still hold a grip over these people once the cameras are turned off and our planes leave. Until that happens, all we will witness is July is yet another expensive concert that will benefit everyone else but the poor.

STOP EXPLOITING THE POOR AND SICK IN AFRICA!!!