Annie Lennox Marches For Equality
Annie Lennox isn’t stopping. Today in London, in recognition of International Women’s Day, she walked in solidarity with other celebrities, politicans, and supporters of gender equality.
More than 600 people participated in the march, and it’s just the kind of thing Annie Lennox has been fortunate enough to do throughout her career. “I feel I inherited the benefits of the suffragette movement,” she told BBC.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-rqQXKk8XY
Activism is nothing new to Annie Lennox, she has been helping to raise money for AIDS charities for decades, and has been a lifelong feminist. In an opinion piece on Oprah.com, she explains when she realized that she, as an individual, could make a difference.
She was invited to perform at an AIDS concert to benefit Nelson Mandela’s AIDS charity 46664.
“That moment, as I listened to Nelson Mandela, propelled me forward. I evolved from being a singer-songwriter-performer-mother-woman to being an activist. I began to speak, blog, and engage,”she said.
Music has brought Annie Lennox back in the spotlight recently. She released her new album Nostalgia, and has been doing press promotions for it; and she gave a performance at the 57th Grammy Awards with Hozier that set social media ablaze. According to Vogue, sales of her new album reportedly went up 509 percent as a result.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HZEChv1AaOk
So while she has the world’s attention, Annie Lennox is going to do what Annie Lennox does — make people listen.
“Imagine a world where every female can actually realise her right to live free from violence, to to school, to participate in decisions and to earn equal pay for work. For me, these are the essential goals of feminism; and ultimately the reason why men and boys must come on board to achieve this vision with us,” she wrote in The Guardian.
She recently took some heat for criticizing Beyonce and her take on feminism. Billboard conveyed and the interview that Annie Lennox gave with NPR that addressed the issue. “Twerking is not feminism. That’s what I’m referring to. It’s not — it’s not liberating, it’s not empowering. It’s a sexual thing that you’re doing on a stage; it doesn’t empower you. That’s my feeling about it.” Before returning to Nostalgia, Lennox said, “Maybe this is a good thing because it creates debate.”
[Image via Manfred Werner – Tsui]
