Democracy Now spoke this morning with legendary singer, actor, humanitarian and activist, Harry Belafonte on President Obama’s success as the American President.
“And when you ask me about Barack Obama, it is exactly what happened to Kennedy. We, the American people, made the history of that time come to another place by our passion and our commitment to change. What is saddened—what is sad for this moment is that there is no force, no energy, of popular voice, popular rebellion, popular upheaval, no champion for radical thought at the table of the discourse.”
“I think [Obama] plays the game that he plays because he sees no threat from evidencing concerns for the poor,” Belafonte says. “He sees no threat from evidencing a deeper concern for the needs of black people, as such. He feels no great threat from evidencing a greater policy towards the international community, for expressing thoughts that criticize the American position on things and turns that around. Until we do that, I think we will be forever disappointed in what that administration will deliver.” More.
Belafonte is featured this year at Sundance in the critically acclaimed documentary, “Sing Your Song.” The film follows the social activism of the 83-year-old singer of “Banana Boat Song” and “Scarlet Ribbons.” Belafonte has been at the vanguard of the U.S. civil rights movement, anti-apartheid efforts in South Africa and ending gang violence on the streets of Los Angeles.
Sundance founder Robert Redford called Belafonte’s tale “a story about a man whose story should be told for generations to come,” and the documentary earned a standing ovation.