GRASSROOTS MUSIC FESTIVAL MARKS GLOBAL PEACE DAY

It’s a year since one of the most monumental events in human history. We’re setting up a monumental grassroots Peace Not War Music Festival in London in February 2004. PLEASE take a look at what we’re doing and support us by helping get the word out there!

As part of international celebrations on the anniversary of last year’s historical global peace marches the producers of the Peace Not War CD bring to London the biggest ever grassroots music festival in the UK.

February 15th 2003 saw the largest public display of resistance to war ever recorded in history. Over 5 million people demonstrated around the world in an attempt to stop the war on Iraq.

Since then America, the UK and other nations have invaded Iraq, nearly 10,000 civilians have been killed and more than 20,000 injured. Over 600 Coalition soldiers are dead. Thousands of Iraqi military men and women are dead.

But the international peace movement has not given up. Never before has there been such a global social movement. To mark the anniversary of the marches last year, music festivals are being put on all over the world. In London there will be four nights of fantastic music from mainstream big-name acts like Alabama 3, Faithless, Mark B and Blade, Adam Freeland, Vadim, Howie B, Stereo MCs,and artists from Lamb, to lesser-known musicians who want to speak out in the name of peace.

The festival aims to remind both the public and the government of the UK that the peace movement is still growing and is now more crucial than ever. By using the inspiring, empowering and educational power of music and the creative arts Peace Not War hopes to instil hope into the public and catalyse a sense of grass-roots-power in the UK. Britain’s role in international peace is central. It is in the name of British people that thousands of civilians and soldiers are killed all over the world in the name of humanity while others are left to suffer ignored. We live in a democracy and the British people deserve to have a say, to have power and to say ‘NO’.

Taking place at the Hackney Ocean in London the festival is split over four nights by music genre: rock/punk, urban/hip-hop, dance, and acoustic/jazz. Over 70 artists will be performing over the four days alongside a working exhibition of art from UK artists inspired by the recent war and the peace movement, including Banksy, Leon Kuhn, RCA graduates and local school children from the Hackney borough. There will also be films, spoken word, stalls and an ‘education’ zone.

The festival is being brought to London by the producers of The Peace Not War CD and Festival of Flight. It's as grass roots as it gets: produced, funded and organised by a small group of individual activists who came together with a single dream: to raise the voice of the peace movement and to bring inspiration and empowerment to the mainstream once more. JOHN PILGER: "The Peace Not War CD is vital to the grass roots opposition to war, conquest and occupation. Censorship of anti-war music by the BBC, MTV and other media is all the more reason for doing it yourself."

So Far the Peace Not War CD has raised over £50,000 for peace groups internationally.

Musicians confirmed so far are:

THURSDAY 12th FEBRUARY
Alabama 3
Goldblade
The Lovegods
Eve Libertine + Penny Rimbaud (Crass)
Miss Black America
Karma Sutra (France)
Conflict
Gertrude
SPECIAL GUEST t.b.a.

FRIDAY 13th FEBRUARY
Mark B and Blade
TaskForce + Rawdog
Jehst + IQ + Asaviour
MC Navigator + DarkFire
Phi-Life-Cypher
Skinnyman + SuparNovar + Uncle Festa + DJ Flip
Vadim
Stereo MCs (DJ set)
GM Baby (Peace Not War CD)
The Rub
CarpetFace
Hermione
Micke Morphingaz
DJ Rubbish
The Unpeople (Peace Not War CD)

SATURDAY 14th FEBRUARY
Free*land (Adam's band)
MC Tali + the Full Cycle band
Howie B
Shut Up and Dance
Ragga Twins
Fun~da~mental (DJ set)
Visionary Underground
Pandit G (Asian Dub Foundation)
Rootsman
IDC
DJ DisOrientalist (Peace Not War CD)
Lazslo Beckett + DJ Rubbish

SUNDAY 15th FEBRUARY
SPECIAL GUEST t.b.a.
Faithless (Unplugged)
Slovo
Seize the Day
Lucky Four (feat. Oddur of Lamb)
Rythms of Resistance Samba Band
The Rub
Crass Agenda (‘jazz-style’ Crass)
Nemo Jones
Robb Johnson
Martha Tilston
John Lester (USA)
Ami Saraiya (USA)
Narmin Zangana
Motiv
Torben & Joe (Peace Not War CD)
Akemi Kuniyoshi

Please call us for more information and check out the website: www.peace-not-war.org

If you can help in any way – writing an article, talking about us or just by mentioning us or putting a banner/link on your website – you would be doing a great deal for the British peace movement.

Donations of any kind – time, resources or funding – are always greatly appreciated (and currently much needed!)

Peace to you all and we look forward to seeing you there!