Yahoo News Rosario Dawson, Jesse Williams, Aloe Blacc Among Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice Award Recipients
Rosario Dawson, Jesse Williams and Aloe Blacc are among this year’s Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice Award recipients.
The honors — also presented to Aja Monet, Matt Post, Carmen Perez-Jordan, RodStarz and Sean Pica — were handed out at the 2024 Tribeca Festival on Friday, following the world premiere screening of the Belafonte doc Following Harry, directed by Susanne Rostock and featuring the honorees.
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The award, which Tribeca first presented in 2021, recognizes individuals who used storytelling and the arts to enact change in their communities. Political activist and author Angela Davis presented the awards.
Dawson, an outspoken activist for various causes, co-founded Voto Latino, focused on educating and empowering Latinx voters, and Studio One Eighty Nine, a lifestyle artisan-forward brand produced in Ghana celebrating African heritage. She has also worked on issues including youth homelessness and domestic violence.
Williams, known for his roles in series like Grey’s Anatomy and Only Murders in the Building, is a Tony winner for his role in Take Me Out, and he produced the Oscar-winning short Two Distant Strangers and executive produced the 2016 documentary Stay Woke: The Black Lives Matter Movement.
Aloe Blacc pledged early on to use his music, which has included such hits as “Wake Me Up” and “The Man,” for positive social change. He is focusing on amplifying the mission of nonprofits with his next musical projects and founded biotech company Major Inc., which is focused on preventing future pandemics and infection.
Monet, a surrealist blues poet and musician, has participated in and assembled movements and was a featured speaker at the Women’s March. Post, a student at Yale Law School is a leader in the gun safety movement, working for March for Our Lives. Perez-Jordan is president and CEO of The Gathering for Justice, founded by Belafonte. She also co-founded Justice League NYC and Justice League CA. RodStarz is half of the hip-hop group Rebel Diaz, who uses music to spread knowledge about injustice and organize. Pica is the executive director of Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison, a nonprofit that provides college education and re-entry support to currently and formerly incarcerated people.
Following Harry begins with Belafonte at 84 embarking on a 10-year journey to disrupt injustice by encouraging entertainers and activists to overcome national unrest and anger, believing love can redirect oppression into oblivion.
Belafonte died in April 2023 at the age of 96. The actor, producer, singer and activist used his stardom to raise awareness of civil rights issues and worldwide injustices.
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