The Sound of Innovation: We Will Move Forward
Case studies from UNHCR’s Ecuador and Mexico operations on the use of music to communicate for social change.
By Cían McAlone, Assistant Innovation Officer — Strategic Communications.
The need for social change is borne out of social disharmony. It is fitting, therefore, that the harmonies of music are such a powerful tool for the beckoning of new worlds. In an era of digital and sensory bombardment, music has the capacity to anchor the search for better ways of being in the depths of our ties of kinship, history, and identity.
The range of this capacity is here explored through two examples of musical communication in the context of seeking justice and solidarity with displaced communities: in the case of Ecuador, a musical form associated with the dead used to empower in the face of gender-based violence; and in Mexico, a popular form associated with a socially engaged community used to celebrate World Refugee Day.
It is the hope of the UN Refugee Agency’s (UNHCR) Innovation Service that the following projects will inspire a greater consideration of music in achieving the strategic objectives of communications activities. A consideration that begins with the question, “What if the future could sing?”
Ecuador: Traditional Music Against Gender-Based Violence
The region of Esmeraldas in northern Ecuador, which straddles the border with Colombia to the north, is home to the rich tradition of Afro-Ecuadorian culture. It also serves as home to many communities displaced by the Colombian conflict. Whether newly arrived in Esmeraldas, or the child or relative of Colombian refugees from earlier times, the cultural harmonies between the north of Ecuador and the south of Colombia have played a distinct role in the dynamics of displacement, protection, and belonging for the people of the area.
In one such community, Calerón, San Lorenzo, the women’s group ‘Tía Gachita’ meets regularly to play music, to support and care for one another, and to discuss the issues of the day. Walking past one of their meetings, and apart from the swells of laughter and chatter, you might well hear the Arrullo.
The Arrullo is a type of song and rhythm particular to Afro-culture in South America. It is often offered up in the memory of the dead, and it helps to mediate ceremonies and rituals in the unique blend of African diasporic traditions and Catholicism. It was the Arrullo that inspired the women of Tia Gachita, along with colleagues from the UNHCR and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), to harness the power of music to tackle issues related to gender-based violence.
Beginning in February 2020, UNHCR and UNFPA together initiated a series of workshops with the Tia Gachita group, designed to inform and organize around the prevention of gender-based violence and the support of victims.
Amanda Porozo, Field Assistant in the UNHCR Esmeraldas Office, explains, “In the workshops, the group started to write phrases to fight against gender-based violence. We wanted to find an effective way to reach the local population in the area.” The workshops provided the opportunity both for creativity, as well as for incorporating the important information about gender-based violence into the lyrics.
Originally intended as an audio product, the idea of a music video soon emerged. UNHCR donated several traditional instruments such as the cununo, tambora, guasá and the marimba, and to record the audio, the group went to the ‘Youth House’, a cultural centre in the area. The video component required hiring a production company to collaborate with Tia Gachita. Porozo acknowledges, “It is our goal of teaching skills to the community so they can make their own videos in the future.”
Vibrant and evocative, the video is a window into the life and landscape of the group. Against the recurrent chant of ‘vamos a salir adelante’ (We will move forward), proclamations of ending violence, and accessing support and reproductive health services, the women dance, make processions and even join together on a viridescent raft on the water.
Laura Ostos Garzon, Community-Based Protection Assistant in Esmeraldas, spoke of the meaning that the video held for the community, “The community had a really positive response to the video at a screening event, and as it was shared on social media. Local institutions and authorities were very pleased by the effort. Tía Gachita felt inspired to make more videos on other topics, and they felt empowered to undertake new projects to reach the community.”
The role of music in this initiative is critical to understanding its impact. Created in a popular traditional form, the song was brought to the sites of the community’s cultural and social exchange, it became of and by the community.
Memory is another strength of this musical communication. As Porozo recalls, “We had tried before with other types of workshops to talk about gender-based violence, but when people went back to their homes with what they learnt, it didn’t stay with them for too much time. Songs are things that remain with them. I remember how useful songs were to learn information at school!”
Ostos Garzon remarks on the potential of art to produce social change, “Historical memory allows people to connect. We have been underestimating the potential of art to produce social change. In this Afro-community, music is a part of who they are. Art is not something that can only be done by those who have studied it.”
Indeed, music’s communicative and political power predates universities, and the hierarchies and systems that necessitate a gender-based violence workshop in the first place. Projects that empower communities to counter violence in their own words, on their own terms are the path to a new harmony. The lyrics of Tia Gachita describe it best:
The music video can be viewed here.
Mexico: Rocking Out to Solidarity in Refugee Day Broadcasts
The usual solutions for the celebration of World Refugee Day in UNHCR’s Mexico operation were off the table in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In previous years, street events were organized and information stalls set up to inform members of the public of the challenges facing displaced communities. The pandemic presented, if not obliged, the possibility to communicate in new ways. UNHCR Mexico City’s communications team got to work.
Concerned that an online webinar or lecture would fail to engage the public on the importance of supporting refugees in Mexico, and curious about the potential of a musical event, the team turned to a cultural powerhouse in Mexico: rock music.
Inspired by the emergence of rock music in the United States in the 1950s, Mexican rock music — or rock nacional — soon grew popular across the country, enjoying a resurgence in popularity at the turn of the millennium. Rock artists and their fans have a reputation for being engaged in human rights and environmental issues, further piquing the interest of UNHCR colleagues.
Silvia Garduno, Communications and Public Information Officer in UNHCR Mexico, was excited by the opportunity to communicate to new audiences. “By organizing concerts with popular bands, we could share our message with their fans who respect and listen to their favourite singers. The new thing for us was working with an industry we didn’t know a lot about at first. It was important for us to select artists and a genre that reflected the values of UNHCR, and whose writing held legitimacy in the eyes of Mexicans.”
In late May, the idea of a home concert was agreed upon, and in consideration of copyright rules, artists sang their own songs for the event. This is where the name Palomazo por los Refugiados — or Jam for Refugees — came from. Partnering with W Radio in Mexico City, what was initially planned as a short one-off concert soon became a four-show series, one every two weeks, for which artists would pre-record their songs at home.
Artists submitted audio and video separately and the team hired producers to piece the shows together. The effort required adapting to last-minute changes in availability and managing relationships from different UNHCR offices, artists, and the radio station.
While the songs in the concerts were not about refugee issues, the artists agreed to share messages and stories about refugees in between performances. For Garduno, putting the music before UNHCR’s brand was a key decision, “If you want to engage music fans and have an impact with the message, you must give them music, not overload them with too many messages or a focus on UNHCR or statistics.” Each show carried a particular thematic focus, such as integration or the refugee situation in the south of the country.
The artists were really enthusiastic to learn more about the causes and issues, and investing time in these new relationships has set the foundation for long-term support and further collaboration in the future. Entering into the unknown of an unfamiliar industry and technical territory, the team learnt that people are often very willing to help and to connect throughout their networks, if you take the first step of being open to a new approach.
Reflecting on the initiative, Garduno observes, “This year, our World Refugee Day events had so much more impact, and we succeeded in promoting awareness of refugee issues to new groups by gathering people around the music they love.” Aside from the radio listenership, the performances received over 100,000 views on Facebook, 20,000 on Periscope, and 8,000 on Youtube.
The shows can be found here.
Whether rock or the arrullo, music is a powerful tool that gathers people around the same hymn sheet to connect with each other and with the experience of the art. Perhaps more significantly from an organizational perspective, it takes UNHCR away from its own hymn sheet, away from our acronyms and humanitarian-speak, and into new spaces, carried by new voices and old traditions.
