30 Hour Famine Event @ American University
written by Brendan Kiernan
Around 30 American University students fasted for 30 hours to raise awareness in the AU community about hunger in the developing world. The performance aspect of the event came after a speaker about hunger and policy. It was interesting to see the energy in the room change so much so quickly. There were differences in politics amongst some of the participants/speakers and the Guerilla Poets, and it all went smoothly.
We played with my friend Travis’ band the Exclamation Brothers, which included guitar, bass guitar, a cello, and a jembe. I have been trying to get us to collaborate for a while and we all thought it went well. We all listened to each other. All of the Guerilla Poets at the event (Mark N, Gustav, Jess, and Brendan) each had the space to do their own pieces. Mark sang Bob Dylan, Jess did “Down to Oppression,” Gustav did an original piece, and I did a piece I wrote specifically for the event about hunger.
My friend Carney was the only person in the crowd to take advantage of the open mike. He is a straight vegan punk who is the singer in a hardcore band. It was his first time doing spoken word and he drummed the beat on his chest.
The crowd of about 25 was interested, we had their attention, and people danced in their seats. Jess and I felt encouraged by the crowd. It was a good outreach opportunity for AU students to see us in action. CASJ (the Community Action Social Justice Coalition) which is a conglomerate of all the activist groups on campus possibly will want our support for upcoming events.