New York City.
March 17th, 2009. Archbishop Emeritus
Desmond Tutu was honored at the UN General
Assembly for his lifetime of service in human
rights. Nobel Peace Prize
winner Tutu once said, “do your little bit of good
where you are; it's those little bits of good put
together that overwhelm the world," epitomizing the
spirit of the MDG Awards. Widely regarded as
“South Africa’s moral conscience”, he has been
described by Nelson Mandela as “somewhat strident,
often tender, never afraid, and seldom without
humor, his voice will always be the voice of the
voiceless.” Tutu managed to entertain all of us with
his comedic comment, “I’m not as young as I look.”
He spoke of a 400 year old school in Holland that he
visited after it was named in his honor and said a
child asked him, “Were you here when the school was
built?” He danced and sang off the stage singing,
“I’m going to take a sentimental journey.” It is
obvious why Tutu has so many books compiled of his
speeches and sayings. Many people were in awe of
being in the presence of such a great human being
and humanitarian.
Actor
Armand Assante opened the Millennium
Development Goals (MDG) program, remarking, “I
am pleased to be among the most extraordinary minds
of humanitarianism in the world. Many have to
negotiate through hatred to get things done, these
men negotiate through peace.” Macy Gray
rocked the UN with her message of love getting
everyone moving to her hit “Say Good-Bye”, a perfect
Millennium message for us all, “My world crumbles if
you are not here.” Sol Guy,
the co-founder of DCM, and co-creator, co-producer,
and host of MTV’s 4REAL teased the audience to let
loose and not give “diplomatic claps” when
applauding. A veteran artist manager, Sol is
one of Canada’s leading music executives .4REAL is a
community of individuals from around the world who
are passionate about creating social change through
action, art, and culture. K’Naan; (known for
his rhymes and activism), belted out his
memories of growing up in a war torn Somalia. Njakatiana,
heart throb singer from Madagascar melted the hearts
of the audience. Mike Hucknall from Simply
Red sang “Come to My Aid” solo. The evenings
band was made up of multi-instrumentalist and
musical director for Paul Simon; Mark Stewart,
Steve Jordan on drums, David Paich from TOTO on
keyboard , Keaton Simon on guitar, and other award
winning artists. Sol said, “We have a collective
chance to make a radical change.” It was a treat to
see The Junior Fountain Gospel Choir perform amongst
the great artists of the world.
Dr. Kevin M. Cahill
was presented with A Lifetime Achievement Award for
his life long dedication of extraordinary service.
Dr. Cahill said, “healing and solidarity are moral
responsibilities for all of us.” He reflected upon
his experiences in disease ridden Somalia in 1962,
the embargoes on health care that affected
Nicaurauga in 1987, first hand accounts of what is
happening in Darfur, Chad and the Congo. He stated
that he has “tried to heal the wounds of war.” Dr.
Kevin M. Cahill, is a leading specialist in tropical
medicine who worked in the streets of India with
Mother Teresa. For more than 45 years, Dr. Cahill
has been a driving force in humanitarian assistance
and relief efforts around the world.
Largely responsible for
putting the evenings festivities together were David
NG; Chairman of the World Harmony Alliance and H.E.
Ambassador Francis Lorenzo. Lorenzo stated that to
achieve the MDGs,
we need to develop a global partnership for
development and to address the challenges
effectively. Action
and interaction are needed in all countries and from
all sides:
governments, business,
non-governmental organizations, academia, community
groups, individuals and United Nations entities
Jonathan
Granoff ; author, attorney, and international peace
activist who’s life's work is dedicated to the total
elimination of nuclear weapons worldwide spoke.
Granoff called the UN “home for everyone”
saying, “While many worry
about Wall Street, the majority of the poverty
stricken in the world have no street.” Poverty
levels around the world are deepening with
each passing month. He said that $1.3 Trillion a
year is spent
on military.
Opening
remarks were made by H.E. Miguel d’Escato Brockmann
about the South South Corporation to help the
worlds poorest and most vulnerable people. Other
remarks were made by H.E. Nassir Abdlaziz Al-Nassar
and Dr. Jeffrey D. Sachs. We were reminded of the
Millennium Goal set in 2000 to bridge the gap
between poverty and wealth. We have lost a decade
when we expected to be closing the gap between the
rich and poor. With recent economic downturns this
goal is growing increasingly difficult.
The General
Assembly was filled with government officials,
international luminaries, renowned artists, astute
members of society and celebrated figures.
The “lifetime
achievement” recognition is being used to kick-off
what will be an annual MDG awards event. Beginning
in September, the awards program will shift to
recognize individuals, organizations and nations
that are making impressive progress in implementing
the eight MDGs as established in 2000 by the United
Nations. The goals are to be achieved by 2015 in
response to the world’s primary development
challenges.
The Eight
Millennium Development Goals are:
Goal 1:
Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger <http://www.undp.org/mdg/goal1.shtml>
Goal 2:
Achieve universal primary education <http://www.undp.org/mdg/goal2.shtml>
Goal 3:
Promote gender equality and empower women <http://www.undp.org/mdg/goal3.shtml>
Goal 4: Reduce
child mortality <http://www.undp.org/mdg/goal4.shtml>
Goal 5:
Improve maternal health <http://www.undp.org/mdg/goal5.shtml>
Goal 6: Combat
HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases <http://www.undp.org/mdg/goal6.shtml>
Goal 7: Ensure
environmental sustainability <http://www.undp.org/mdg/goal7.shtml>
Goal 8:
Develop a Global Partnership for Development <http://www.undp.org/mdg/goal8.shtml>
Story by: Sara
Herbert-Galloway
sara@blacktiemagazine.com
Photos by
Steve Mack and Justin Galloway
To view more
please go to:
www.herbertcollection.com
www.sdmackpictures.com,
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