Artists Against Apartheid

John F. Kennedy Center
for the Performing Arts

The centerpiece of the exhibition American Voices Against Apartheid, our film focuses on the instrumental role played by the arts community in the struggle. Footage from performances by artists like Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen, Peter Gabriel, Hugh Masekela and Miriam Makeba are featured as VideoArt located and licensed archival footage from fifteen different sources: including the 1975 Tony Awards, college student Barack Obama speaking at a 1981 divestment protest, a Stevie Wonder performance at the United Nations, Sen. Joe Biden forcefully speaking out against the South African government and behind the scenes footage from the filming of the “Sun City” music video. The exhibition and film premiered at the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg, South Africa before moving to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

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