UN
Stop Ebola
Concert Has
Marley Covers,
Missing
Celebs,
Distorted
Priorities
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS, March
2 -- A concert
at the UN to
Stop Ebola
would seem to
be a
no-brainer,
easy to
promote, a
feel-good
event. But
when the
February 27
press
conference for
the March 2
concert was
held, there
were at first
no journalists
there.
A photographer
member of the
Free
UN Coalition
for Access went
down to cover
it, mostly
to be polite.
Later a louder
UN
Correspondents
Association
(a/k/a UN's
Censorship
Alliance)
board member
went, saying
“on behalf of
UNCA”
would Derek
Jeter and
Jackie Chan
actually
attend?
Well, no. And
when the event
itself
happened,
there were
whispers,
“Nick Cannon
isn't here.”
But Ban
Ki-moon was
there, as was
Samantha
Power, back
from her
appearance at
AIPAC in
Washington.
Italian
Ambassador
Sebastiano
Cardi spoke, saying
that Italy is
not an African
country but is
close to them.
Libya will be
considered by
the Security
Council later
in the week.
Inner City
Press took and
tweeted some
photographs,
and as other
trashed the
event as not
even including
the promised
Salt n' Peppa,
praised
it for the
late Bob
Marley cover
as kids bobbed
in UN General
Assembly seats
marked “ACABQ”
- the Advisory
Committee on
Budgetary
Questions, of
course.
The budget of
UNMEER, of
course, has
yet to be
finalized. Ban
Ki-moon asked
for
contribution
to “his” trust
fund; an
adviser to the
NYC Police
Commissioner
said “I'm from
the 'hood.” An
on-air
personality
for NY1 called
up one speaker
after another.
It seems many
UN staff
weren't even
told of the
event.
A
former UN
event
organizer
Gordan Tapper
was in charge;
the UN
Department of
Public
Information
declined to
sponsor it,
several
participants
noted.
But
this is the
UN; singing in
the UN General
Assembly is
irresistible.
And here's
hoping that
the last mile
on Ebola is
actually
accomplished
and not
fumbled like
so much else.
Watch this
site.
, 
