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Event

ARC @ WOMEX 2021

October 28-30 | Porto, Portugal

ARC will participate in WOMEX this year with a session “Language, Music and Censorship – When tradition becomes resistance” presented during the conference.

Julie Tr​ébault, ARC Director, will chair this session with Sara Curruchich (Guatemala) from Tejiendo Sonidos, Rahima Mahmut (China/UK) from the World Uyghur Congress and self-taught musician Ebo Krdum (Sweeden/Sudan), discussing how those committed to artistic freedom and indigenous people’s rights can help support, defend, and uplift such musicians who are censored, threatened, and/or imprisoned.

In 2020, Bangladeshi authorities began arresting Baul musicians -- religious folk singers -- under the infamous Digital Securities Act, claiming that Baul music was antagonistic to the dominant religious and spiritual philosophies of the country. In China, Uyghur musicians like Abdurehim Heyit have been brutally targeted for their music. Although Chinese authorities maintain that he is still alive, many believe that he died in custody in 2019. In Guatemala, countless activists and artists like Leonardo Lisandro Guarcax Gonzalez and Argentinian folk musician Facundo Cabral have been murdered for their efforts towards preserving indigenous culture and rights. In Sudan, ethnic and religious discrimination has paved the way for moral revisions and banning of music, once considered integral to Sudanese culture and traditions. This pattern of persecution is reflected in cultures and languages throughout the globe, to the point that creative expression in certain languages has been banned or censored because it is perceived as synonymous with anti-government sentiments -- but such restrictions are tantamount to invisibilizing entire histories and cultures. 

In the midst of this global surge of attacks on musicians practicing folk and indigenous traditions, the burden of protecting and advocating for them and their work falls on all of us. This session will create a safe and dynamic space to explore how those committed to artistic freedom and indigenous people’s rights can help support, defend, and uplift such musicians who are censored, threatened, and/or imprisoned for practicing music that is integral to their cultures and communities.

WOMEX Worldwide Music Expo is the international music meeting and the biggest conference of the global music scene, featuring a trade fair, talks, films, and showcase concerts. This year, WOMEX is held in Porto, Portugal.

Speakers

Sara Curruchich by Xun Ciin

Sara Curruchich is a Guatemalan singer-songwriter. Curruchich, who is of Mayan Kaqchikel origin, is also an activist in defense of women's and indigenous people's rights. She plays both guitar and marimba, and became well known in her country with her 2015 song "Ch'uti'xtän" ("Girl").

To learn more about Sara and engage with her activism, follow her on social media:

Twitter Facebook Instagram Spotify

Rahima Mamut

Rahima Mahmut is an Uyghur singer, human rights activist, and award-winning translator of the poignant prison memoir The Land Drenched in Tears by Soyungul Chanisheff. Her latest work includes working as a consultant and translator for the ITV documentary Undercover: Inside China’s Digital Gulag  shown July 2019; and translator for the latest BBC documentary China: A New World Order. Currently, she is the UK representative for the World Uyghur Congress.

To learn more about Rahima and engage with her activism, follow her on social media:

Twitter Facebook Instagram

Ebo Krdum by Olof Grind

Ebo Krdum is a Sudanese-Swedish self-taught singer, guitarist, artist and activist. He creates contemporary political afro-blues music rooted in several musical traditions around the sub-Saharan area. Ebo sings in eight different languages and his lyrics mostly contain topics such as justice, peace, freedom, equality, diversity and liberty.

To learn more about Ebo and engage with his activism, follow him on social media:

Twitter Facebook Instagram Spotify

Julie Trébault by Pen America

Julie Trébault is the director of PEN America’s Artists at Risk Connection project. A highly-respected leader in the art world, she brings skills, experience, and a network to launch a new support system for artists at risk worldwide. Prior to joining PEN America, she served as the director of public programs at the Museum of the City of New York, where she built a robust roster of panel discussions, performances, screenings, and symposia spanning New York City’s arts, culture, and history.  

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