Music, art festival seeks to boost fair trade
Culture Fest 2005 -- A Celebration of Our World Culture
Second World Productions
Sept. 3, noon-10 p.m.
Downtown Lowell, across from 172 Middle St.
$5 for adults, $2 for children ages 6-12, free for children younger than 6
www.second-world.com
978-455-6025
''The barriers that have created separate worlds among one humanity were created by men," is the philosophy behind Lowell's Second World. '' 'First World', 'Third World,' Forget what you were told. Enter the Second World." In what sounds like a summer movie tagline is actually an art organization hoping to bring people together through cross-cultural media, music and art initiatives.
Second World's second annual event, Culture Fest 2005, kicks off at noon on Sept. 3 in downtown Lowell.
Aimed at stopping the exploitation in today's global economy, the organization uses sustainable and artistic methods to connect both people and resources, says Second World codirector and founder Valerie Diallo.
Second World's mission is advocating fair trade with indigenous workers and respect for native cultural traditions, she said.
''Culture Fest 2005 is a living, breathing example of what Second World is all about: a place of common ground in a diverse and sometimes divided world," said Diallo. ''It is the only place to see jazz, belly dancing, flamenco, African music and global funk fusion -- all on one stage."
Second World has a staff of volunteers working locally and internationally, including the directors, Diallo and her husband, Alpha; educational coordinator Karen Parker; Web and graphics producer Castro-Yves Arboite and more volunteers and partners in India, Senegal, Nepal, Jamaica, and Peru, said Diallo.
In what Diallo calls a year-round Live 8 concert, the celebration this year will include the Freelance Bishops, a funk-jazz group based in Lowell, Peruvian singer Alfredo Velasquez and Gypsy, a multicultural storytelling group. Among the performers slated to attend, the Juanito Pascual Flamenco Quartet, the Berkeley-trained 10-piece reggae orchestra Spiritual Rez and world-music artist Balla Tounkara are generating the most buzz, according to Diallo.
In addition to music, arts and crafts will be displayed, dancing performances will take place throughout the day, and ethnic cuisine from eateries such as the Udupi Bhavan South Indian Restaurant and the Brew'd Awakening Coffeehaus will be served, she explained.
When night falls, video installations by electronic artist Walter Wright will be shown, ''adding just the right touch to the complete transformation of historic downtown Lowell into a global sphere of cultural celebration."
''We are mocking the labels of 'First' and 'Third' Worlds -- and providing an arena to challenge and examine the divisions of different so-called 'worlds,' " said Diallo. ''We like to execute this program in a positive manner, via art, documentation and special interactive events. We aim to change lives, to inspire hope via media, music and art."
Diallo founded Second World in 1997, after she completed research and filmmaking projects abroad. For five years, she studied World Bank policies and their efforts in Jamaica, visiting the slums of Kingston and the free trade zones while conducting outreach to underage sex-workers of Negril.
''I saw with my own eyes the destruction created by the current model of the global economy and I was driven to do something about it, using art as the catalyst," Diallo explained.
Diallo said Lowell is the perfect city for this celebration, saying the once-industrial wasteland is now a garden of diverse culture. Lowell displays a resilience that is the core of Second World's inspiration, she said.
''In a place where the Industrial Revolution began and the resulting workers rights struggles, what better place for Second World?" asked Diallo. ''Lowell is a place where people fought for their rights. Today, new life is breathed into the city by the vibrant immigrant community in tandem with visionary artists."
Second World is based in a rehabbed mill building, which has become the artist community of Ayer Lofts in downtown Lowell.
Last year's celebration, occurring as a series of events over the course of the summer rather than one large event, had a turnout of about one thousand people, said Diallo. She says that Second World hopes to extend Culture Fest into the Labor Day weekend in the future.
''This festival is grass-roots, with world-class performers and hundreds of personnel volunteering their time," she said. The goal is to raise funds for the organization, but the event is designed to be enjoyed and affordable. All funds from the event will benefit Second World's global art initiatives.
