Band-Aid
Band-Aid and Live-Aid Didn’t Help the suffering in Africa- it Perpetuated it
As a kid growing up in the 1980s, one of the biggest rock moments etched upon my mind was Live Aid, a multi-venue rock concert held in the summer of 1985.
Organized by Sir Bob Geldof (Boomtown Rats) and Midge Ure (Ultravox), the purpose was to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia.
They held concerts, simultaneously in London (72,000 fans at Wembley Stadium), Philadelphia (90,000 fans at JFK Stadium), Sydney and Moscow. The event was so huge it drew 1.5 BILLION viewers on television in over 100 countries. All of this was broadcast live. It’s coming upon the 21st Anniversary of this historic event and the big question is……….WHERE DID THE MONEY GO?
According to published reports, between Band Aid’s cassette single, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”, the Live Aid concert, the BBC Documentary, other news stories regarding the plight and aid sent in by foreign governments, over $1 billion was generated for the cause.
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By exponentially increasing their foreign currency reserves, Col. Mengistu was able to purchase arms and ammunition to help him in his pursuits of displacement. Because of his tactics, the internal war dragged onward for an additional 6 years. Utilizing his tools of famine, starvation and murder, his regime was responsible for killing over 100,000 Ethiopians…..his own people.
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