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Caribbean People Unite For Haiti
Entertainment Macco

On Tuesday 12th January, 2010 Haiti was hit by a devastating earthquake that left over 200,000 people dead, 2 million homeless and 3 million in need of emergency aid. Many countries and organizations have  collected and donated money, food and supplies, however as of today, lots of help is still needed. It has also been reported that approximately one tenth of the aid pledged has been sent. It seems that most of the world have forgotten about Haiti, and moved on to the next natural disaster, however millions of Haitians are still in dire need of help, and what better way to assist than coming together with our Caribbean brothers and sisters to produce an event that provides an avenue for thousands of people to support this cause, as the saying goes "There is strength in numbers."

The West Indian American Day Carnival Association (WIADCA) based in New York, USA, has reached out to musicians and entertainers across the Caribbean to support there initiative "Caribbean Peoples Unite for Haiti", to produce a benefit concert to be held at the Brooklyn Museum (Brooklyn NY) on Thursday 2nd September, 2010. WIADCA is a 501 (c) 3 not-for-profit Organization - presenting the West Indian Carnival Festival in Brooklyn over Labor Day weekend for the last 43 years, this festivals is one of the largest Carnivals in America.  
So moved by this gesture, the Entertainment Macco reached out to Director of Public Relations and Marketing from WIADCA Jean Alexander to shed some light on this event.

Entertainment Macco: Tell me a little about your organization, what are the functions?
Jean: The West Indian American Day Carnival Association (WIADCA) is a tax-exempt and incorporated Organization formed to preserve, promote, produce, support and present Caribbean Carnival Arts & Culture in New York.

Entertainment Macco: How long has WIADCA been in existence?
Jean: The organization was brought to Brooklyn from Harlem in 1965.  At that time the name was not WIADCA. In 1967 Carlos Lezama took over the helm from Rufus Goring and within the next few years, the name went through a few variations, ending with WIADCA in the early 1970's. 

Entertainment Macco: When people hear WIADCA they may automatically think of Labour Day, is the WIADCA brand only prevalent in NYC? Is there anywhere else can the name be heard/found?
Jean: WIADCA is a registered and incorporated brand in New York State and legally it owns the name.  However, slight variations may exist as in Miami Carnival

Entertainment Macco: I heard that WIADCA is in the process of putting together an extremely significant and selfless event, (I am referring to September 2nd).Can you tell me about this event.
Jean: WIADCA feels very strongly about our sister Caribbean Island of Haiti.  When the Earthquake destroyed parts of Haiti in January this year, we organized a Haiti We Love You Solidarity March through the Streets of Brooklyn to bring attention to the situation.  Our president, Yolanda Lezama-Clark and a few members wanted to do more and thought about dedicating a part of the Labor Day Festival in a manner that could help others on the Island, hence the Benefit idea was born.
Entertainment Macco:I understand…this is indeed a great idea

Entertainment Macco: Who are the artistes confirmed to perform at this fund-raiser? (I heard it is somewhere between 20-30 performers)
Jean: The list is very long. The very first person is Wyclef Jean, then Kevin Lyttle, David Rudder, Carimi, Serani,   and dozens more however we are forced by time restrictions to limit the number of artists as we have have 4 hours to work with.

Entertainment Macco: How has the support been so far for this venture?
Jean: So far, so good!  However, the real support would come from patrons purchasing tickets to make the Benefit worth while.

Entertainment Macco: What else do you think could be done to increase this events' awareness?
Jean: Wide spread Advertising and motivating all your listeners/readers to encourage their friends and relatives to log on the www.wiadca.org to purchase tickets on-line (even if they cannot attend)
Entertainment Macco: This interview will definitely help create some awareness which should assist.



Entertainment Macco spoke with some of the artistes involved in this charitable event to find out why their participation in this event is so important to them.

Marlene Younglao
Malene Younglao: "The Haitian people are in dire need of the support of the world, it has been this way since before natural disaster struck. We must not forget our responsibility to our sister island in this her time of need. We cannot continue to ignore what needs to be done to ensure the future of Haiti is prosperous."










Kevon Carter


Kevon Carter: "My participation in this event is important to me because it gave me the opportunity to help someone else. I believe that once an opportunity presents itself I should help, we should help. I believe in unity and coming together with my fellow brothers and sisters from various islands in the Caribbean to show our love and support to Haiti, due to its recent unfortunate occurrences"


Lyndon Lai Tan




Lyndon Lai Tan: "My participation is important in that I can represent my country Trinidad and Tobago, and join other Caribbean countries in solidarity, as a collective family in helping the member that has fallen. More than the music, more than our dreams and aspirations, is a love."













Shawn Noe
Shawn Ma$tamind Noel: "The question is "Why not?", and frankly there's no reason not to. When any member of our immediate family is ill, or hurt, or in any kind of trouble, we rally around them and do what it takes to get them back on their feet again. I believe the same should apply to our Caribbean brothers and sisters in Haiti. I consider it quite a privilege to be involved in this event and would like to urge everyone, especially the West Indian community, to come out and support a more than worthy cause."  


Young Voice
Young Voice: "My Participation in this event is important to me for many reasons. One of the reasons being that I have many friends of Haitian decent, some who have lost a friend or relative in the recent earthquake and if not they know some one who has. I have donated food, clothing, toiletries, etc to help Haiti after the earthquake and why not continue to help them by also donating my time doing something that I Love. Participating in this event is a blessing to me as I am among the cast of many talented artist including the well known "Wyclef John" who is currently running for the President of Haiti. As a "New Artist" in the Music Industry, this event gives me the opportunity to show my talent, spread my music throughout the world, and show continued support in the effort to rebuild Haiti."    

Pupa L'eenidi




Pupa L'eenidi: "To perform was the only decision, the right decision. Since i am a youth, I was taught to help my brother. So if Haiti needs help I am there."








DJ Spice: "I donated my time, because I feel that the country of Haiti needs us right now and I will do anything necessary to help them."









The following artistes are confirmed to perform
 
Wyclef Jean (Haiti)
Kevin Lyttle (St Vincent)
David Rudder (Trinidad & Tobago)
Serani (Jamaica)
Bud Ramsey (Jamaica)
Shawn Ma$tamind Noel (Trinidad & Tobago)
Pupa Leendi (Grenada)
Carimi (Haiti)
Kevon Carter (Trinidad & Tobago)
Young Voice (Trinidad & Tobago)
Demi Dabady (Haiti)
Super P (Grenada)
Mental (Jamaica)
Malene Young Lao (Trinidad & Tobago)
Lyndon Lai Tan (Trinidad & Tobago)
DJ Norie - Power 105.1fm (Panama)
DJ Spice
Impack 2 Band (St. Vincent)
Hosted By MC Wassy, Giselle D Wassy One, Jean Claude Vaval

               

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