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Post by achebeautiful on Oct 7, 2006 10:29:25 GMT -5
Shakira shaking it to help build school
BOGOTA, Colombia - Shakira will donate the proceeds from a concert in her hometown to build an arts school for 1,800 children forced to flee their homes by Colombia's civil war.
The concert, part of the pop diva's worldwide Oral Fixation tour, will is scheduled for Nov. 15 in the Caribbean port city of Barranquilla and is being billed as a festive homecoming for the hip-shaking international superstar who last month was nominated for five Latin Grammy awards.
The English and Spanish bilingual school will bear the name of Shakira's Pies Descalzos (Spanish for Bare Feet) foundation and have an emphasis on arts education, the foundation said Thursday in a statement.
The school will be located in La Playa, a poor suburb of Barranquilla where 45 percent of the residents are minors, only about half of whom attend school.
La Playa's 21,500 residents are among the estimated three million people internally displaced by a half-century of armed conflict between leftist rebels, far-right paramilitary groups and army troops.
The school, which will open in 2008 and has received the backing of education authorities, is being designed by Uruguayan architect Rafael Vinoly, who's credited with having designed New York's Jazz at Lincoln Center complex.
Shakira's foundation already helps 3,380 children living in three other communities of internally displaced persons.
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Post by ocelot on Oct 7, 2006 11:25:56 GMT -5
That's one thing I love about Shakira she doesn't just say things she also acts on them. Pies Descalzos is also the title of Shakira's first international album.
Thanks for sharing.
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Post by achebeautiful on Oct 7, 2006 14:39:16 GMT -5
Your welcome Leona.
I love it when celebrities make contributions to their and other communities. So many of them give to political causes with agendas. But I like it when they give directly to the people living in a community, where the money goes towards helping those who can benefit from it.
Education is something we cannot take for granted, and not everyone gets the same opportunities as others. So I think it is great when artists such as Carrie Underwood, with her involvement in "Y'All Read" and Shakira's effort to build an arts school take place. I also think it is worthy of mention.
I know that Bruce Springsteen from the very beginning of his concert touring career would arrive early to a city he was performing in and find a cause worth donating to and not only give a certain amount from the earnings he made from the show, but also would mention that cause during the concert and invite the audience to also consider giving to it and taking time to check it out. Often times he would spend the day with the organization he was giving to and mention the name of the director, putting a personality behind it. I think it's awesome!
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