South Africa: Dalai Who?

This week the government of South Africa, and President Kgalema Motlanthe, have decided to stand in solidarity with China against human rights.  South Africa symbolically denied a visa to the Dalai Lama, who wanted to attend a peace conference for Nobel laureates in Pretoria.  China is an important trading partner of South Africa, and so Motlanthe didn’t want to allow in a visitor who may remind people that China has a horrible human rights record.  Because that might hurt money flows to elites.

Among those scheduled to attend were: Nelson Mandela, (another SA former president) FW de Klerk, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, (former Finnish president) Martti Ahtisaari, and Queen Rania of Jordan.

The planners have decided to cancel the conference in protest. The BBC reports:

The incident is a huge embarrassment for the South African government, which has placed a lot of importance on democracy and human rights since the end of apartheid in 1994…

Yeah, it is damn embarrassing to bar advocates of justice from entering your country because that might upset oppressors who pay you off.

Saint March Collective

A dear friend of mine is part of a group who started the Saint March Collective, a gallery located on 406 South Street in Philly. It just opened on March 15 and has an amazing show up.

Two dozen artists have created a “Saint” complete with relics of her body parts — each crafted as an artistic statement. Even the eyes are by two different artists. A portion of the moderate price for the art pieces will go toward an organ donor program. (The young creator of the liver is an actual liver transplant recipient!)

The gallery is a part of a “cultural renaissance” planned by landlords and “pioneers” along South Street to revitalize what once was a hub of Philly’s cultural scene. Five new galleries opened this month, all in donated space in formerly vacant storefronts.

Several more galleries are in the pipeline plus a performing arts center for theater, poetry, dance, and music which is scheduled to open by Easter.

…[The planners] have long lobbied to return the street to its artistic heritage established when the street was revitalized when a generation of hippie artists fought a crosstown expressway to save their arts -oriented community.

I hear there’s a new show going up on Sunday, so if you’re in the area check it out!

Media coverage: Art in the Age, Weekly Press, and South Street.

When a Rich Man Realizes Life Isn’t Always Fair

Boo hoo wank wank whaaaa wank wank