By Delinda Lombardo on
Grammy Award winning artist Macy Gray has been quietly lending her support to Darfur United in efforts to spread the word about this amazing team.
Darfur United is an all-refugee soccer team made up of Darfuri refugees living in camps in Eastern Chad. Not only is Darfur United a team, it is also a movement – a movement to bring hope, inspiration, and joy to the displaced people of Darfur.
This weekend, i-ACT, a South Bay (California)-based non-profit grassroots activist organization, will present a fundraising event and exhibit entitled, “ONE STRONG KICK,” benefiting ‘The 2012 Darfur United All-Refugee Soccer Team’ from Darfur, Sudan, which will compete for the coveted Nelson Mandela Trophy in the 2012 Viva World Cup to be held in Iraqi Kurdistan from June 5 – 9, 2012.
The fundraising event will be held at a private residence in Manhattan Beach, CA on Saturday, May 12, 2012 from 6:30 – 10:00 PM.
The following is a note from i-ACT Founder/Director Gabriel Stauring describing Macy Gray’s involvement and passion for this dream team:
- Many people tend to be cynical about celebrities becoming involved in social causes of any kind.
“They are doing it for attention and free publicity.”
“They really don’t do anything, except for lending their name.”
I met Macy about two years ago, and we talked about Darfur. She wanted to go with me to the camps and do anything she could to help. It did not work out for her to go with us, with the region becoming extremely unstable at that time.
I recently contacted her again, telling her about Darfur United on an e-mail. Not long after, Macy called me and asked, “How can I help?” Since then, she has been working everyday to get the word out about our all-refugee team. She’ll tell anyone that will listen (and those that won’t also) about how this team is one of a kind and can change the lives of so many people because it brings hope and a connection to more than what they have experienced over many years. Macy tells it from the heart.
It is not her people or her agent doing this. It is Macy herself, and she’ll call me and send me e-mails anytime day and night, asking if she’s telling it right and if there’s anything else she can do. She’s doing this at a time when she just released a new album and is very busy with work around that.
She asks for absolutely nothing in return. She does not ask for any credit or publicity. But she deserves it.
Her new album is “Covered,” and she’ll be on David Letterman on Tuesday, May 8th. Check it out. Macy is cool. Her website: www.macygray.com
Peace,
Gabriel
BTW, she has told me that she’ll do all that she can to come to our event this coming Saturday, May 12th in Manhattan Beach, CA.
More info on Darfur United can be found here.
Copyright © 2012 Look to the Stars
