Arizona musicians have formed a new organization that hopes to convince touring acts considering a boycott of Arizona over SB 1070—the controversial new immigration law that’s set to take effect at the end of the month—to instead come and help fight the law.
The group, Artists for Action, includes Calexico’s Joey Burns and John Convertino, and the Sand Rubies’ David Slutes.
“The intent is to reach out to local, national and international artists and invite them to come here to Arizona to perform, educate and inspire audiences,” Burns says. “Now more than ever, we need everyone’s help.”
The group hopes to reach out to musicians who have joined the Sound Strike, a group formed by Zack de la Rocha, lead singer of Rage Against the Machine.
More than two dozen acts have said they will join the Sound Strike boycott, including Kanye West, Conor Oberst, Nine Inch Nails, Ry Cooder, My Morning Jacket and Steve Earle.
“You can’t look at SB 1070 in isolation,” says de la Rocha in a video on the Sound Strike website. “It’s part of an entire state’s campaign to humiliate and criminalize an entire population.”
Burns says he understands the concerns of his fellow musicians, but he hopes that some may reconsider coming to Arizona if given a chance to rally fans to fight the law.
“We want to work together with Sound Strike,” Burns says. “Whenever there’s an artistic or cultural boycott, it’s important to back that up by showing your presence and doing something. The intent is to go to fans inside of Arizona and inspire them to vote. If people haven’t registered to vote, now is the time to do it.”
To that end, Artists for Action will be setting up voter-registration tables at shows, including a performance by the Swell Season this Saturday, July 17, at downtown’s Rialto Theatre.
Artists for Action is also planning a major concert in the Phoenix area later this summer. Slutes, who books bands at downtown’s Hotel Congress, says that one day of this year’s HoCo Fest in September will focus on efforts against SB 1070.
“What Arizona needs now is support,” said Jimmy Adkins, of Phoenix-based Jimmy Eat World, in a statement supporting Artists for Action. “I have the utmost respect for musicians, artists and small-business owners who are killing themselves to make something on their own terms. I hope Artists for Action can be the bridge to help inform interested locals—and to help bring like-minded progressive voices back to Arizona.”
Artists for Action found a key ally last week: Congressman Raúl Grijalva, who first called for a boycott of Arizona after SB 1070 was signed by Gov. Jan Brewer in April.
“It’s important to have a progressive presence in this fight against SB 1070,” Grijalva said at a press conference. “Artists have always been at the forefront of change. They need a platform and a venue to do that. Artists for Action provides that. Artists across the country can come here and help us change the course of this state though voter registration, through education and through mobilization.”
Grijalva says he still supports “economic sanctions” against Arizona in response to SB 1070, but he doesn’t want a boycott to go on “any longer than necessary.”
Last week, Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard, this year’s Democratic nominee for governor, called on Grijalva to lift his call for a boycott.
“You have told the media that you would like to change minds here in Arizona through a boycott,” Goddard wrote in a letter to Grijalva. “From what I have seen, the governor and the Legislature don’t seem to care about Arizona’s economic lifeblood. A boycott would only hurt Arizona. I ask you to join with me in calling on businesses across America to give Arizona a chance, and help us to rebuild our economy instead of engaging in hurtful boycotts.”
Grijalva hinted that he’d lift his call for a boycott if federal courts grant an injunction against SB 1070.
“I think the judicial avenue is the way to go,” Grijalva said. “I don’t think I have the power to say ‘Do it’ or ‘Don’t do it.’ But certainly for myself, once (the court case) is settled, there’s a relief point: Everyone can take a deep breath, and then I think it becomes pointless to talk about economic sanctions when there is no motivation for that sanction.”
This article appears in Jul 15-21, 2010.
and for the more intellectually honest…….
“True to its June 29th promise, the Zack de la Rocha-led, anti-SB 1070 musicians’ movement Sound Strike has announced a benefit concert for Friday, July 23 at the Hollywood Palladium to benefit organizations fighting SB 1070 on the ground here in Arizona.”
“Rage Against the Machine and Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band will headline the fundraiser, which Sound Strike is anticipating will raise more than $300,000 for such organizations as Phoenix civil rights leader Salvador Reza’s Puente Movement, and the Florence Project, a non-profit organization that provides free legal services to immigrants detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.”
“The concert is part of a week of activism heading toward July 29, the day SB 1070, Arizona’s new breathing-while-brown law, is scheduled to go into effect. The press release notes that this is RATM’s “first concert in their hometown of Los Angeles in 10 years.” Phx News Times
some of us have a hard time taking this Tucson call to end the boycott seriously when it looks more like a transparent ploy to make some money…
I’m a 60 yr old singer/musician and I think u are totally misinformed and want to stir some crap!! Your parents were probably a bunch of left wing hippies who hate their country as i am sure u do as well.
Shame on u!
I feel like i am in Alice in Wonderland where all tables and chairs are on the ceiling, upside down!
I think that ANY movement that shines a light on getting people registered to vote is progressive indeed! Sadly, the people that this bill is aimed at are unable to have their voice be heard. Annie L.
I agree with apasb, better these national groups raise money outside AZ, than for them to come here and help out a few greedy promoters. Looking at the Rialto Ad, I see a lot of acts are not boycotting AZ. As for any singer-songwriter, however old, who thinks those who disagree with this law “hate their country.” Well, I won’t ever be buying their CD or paying to see them. And I’m 63, just in case anyone thinks being a certain age implies wisdom–I disprove that, daily. I have to say though, I was at small local venue where some alleged local “folk” musicians were playing, and on their van was a crude anti-Obama /pro Fox News bumper sticker. I’ve make a personal choice never to see that group again, but I would not presume to say they don’t love their country, or should leave it.
Annie, I disagree with the last sentence of you comment, though I agree with the first part. This bill isn’t just aimed at people who do not have legal status as American citizens, and who therefore can’t vote. It’s aimed at intimidating anyone whom a police officer has some slight doubt is here illegally. And many of those people can vote, but for a variety of reasons (voter ID issues, unfounded fear they will be more likely to get jury duty, intentional intimidation by racist thugs, and humiliation at the hands of partisan poll workers), they often don’t vote. Now, since I’m white, this law’s not aimed at me, even though I could very well be British, Dutch, German, or Norwegian, and be in this country unlawfully on an expired student or work visa. I’ll never be asked to show any papers. But if my skin was brown, despite all the supposed training regarding racial profiling, you know I would be immediately suspect, even if my family was living here before any white families ever lived in Tucson.
totally misinformed people…..the kind the “owners” count on …baaa, baaaa…….i think either side pro or con are being played…..
I personally think this is all a great BJ to occupy the masses, for a much bigger agenda, thats been going on behind the scenes, not that I am a CT, but …….every form of seperatist, fascist/racist, fear based, us against them, are just social construct(s) meant to occupy the masses, while the owners are busy taking away all our rights, starting fake wars, expanding thier wealth…….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMUiwTubYu0
Oh, so any of us who want to do something about a specific issue are just poor deluded fools who can’t see the big picture. People like the late Bill Hicks presume a superiority by claiming the rest of us don’t see their “blinding insights,” then offer no solution other than ” we can change it just by thinking a different way.” Good luck with wishing away the manner in which our “masters “operate. Or with motivating the vast majority to divest themselves of their material possessions. So, he really offered nothing but impossible utopian solutions, none of which seem to have had a widespread impact, or any impact at all. Of course there have always attempts to divert the populace from what is really being done. But it isn’t good, it’s defeatist, to say just because the whole system is rotten anyone who takes action against any specific, obvious injustice is a fool. A very smug attitude, and I bet all those who laughed in Hicks’ audiences have not changed one iota from listening to his blather. I guess they will flock to Hollywood hack Ron Howard’s proposed movie about Hicks, then chuckle on their way back to the Audi they left on the parking lot.
Bill Hicks never had an assumptious aire of superiority in his body, the reason why you dont get the guy is because your to busy being a bitter, hateful, scathing, wannbe pseudo-intellectual.
and his utopian views that you claim never had an impact, shows just how out of touch you really are my friend. So, you just keep on believing the newspapers and tv, because everyone knows they are the one and only true newsource(s) around.
I never said ” just because the whole system is rotten anyone who takes action against any specific, obvious injustice is a fool”, those are your words what I said – is both sides should be careful because there is a much bigger agenda going on here in the guise of SB 1070…..and all this drama surrounding it is just a distraction to give people the illusion that they have a choice, so when the crap hits the fan they dont see where it came from.
I think you are the one with the smug attitude, instead of expressing your feelings/opinions on the newstory, you expressed your feelings/opinions on someone elses feelings/opinion on the newstory….
Tommy B,
I’m not bitter, I’m not calling other posters names. I would bet that Bill Hicks, as sincere as he might have been, was picked up at his luxury hotel room and transported to whatever venue he was performing at by limo. So he could rant against “materialism.”He wasn’t part of the solution. The whole entertainment business is part of the problem.
“totally misinformed people…..the kind the “owners” count on …baaa, baaaa…….i think either side pro or con are being played…..”
That’s what YOU wrote, and it seems to be making reference to the other comments, not just the story. I don’t consider myself an intellectual, but anyone who writes what you wrote is just plain wrong.
ok, ok, so as you see it, im just plain wrong…….
not gonna even bother, cuz in my opinion all the fuss, is just not worth the effort….w/ the exception being..Bill Hicks….he never quote, unquote – ” Made it”, and never really had got to enjoy the level of success like some of the other comedians he came up with…….his life story is inspiring, and kinda sad, he passed way to young (early 30’s) from cancer, he was a firecracker, a funny mofo, and real as real gets…your assumptions are, as you say, plain old wrong….
peace –
once again –
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1RQmnSJoRg