April 18 Antiwar Cultural Night Report

Funk the War!” were the first three words said to introduce the night. On April 18, 2009 Mobilization Against War & Occupation organized an antiwar cultural night at the Taco Loco Restaurant in Vancouver, Canada entitled “Funk the War.” Over 60 people came throughout the night to participate in this cultural side of building an antiwar movement.

Kerri Goodwin, a MAWO executive member and from the Oji-Cree Nation, MC’d the evening and welcomed everyone to the event. Kerri introduced who MAWO was and the importance of having these cultural events. There was no need for Kerri to explain the title of the cultural night as the first act of the night was spoken word artist Shakeel Lochan, whose first piece was appropriately titled “Funk the War.”

The next performance of the evening was Alex Chichack, a soulful guitarist hailing from Richmond. He was followed by Nic Launay, a BCIT student, who performed covers and originals with his acoustic guitar. Another twist was added to the evening when MAWO classic and favourite, DJ K-Rec, came up next to spin some tunes and get people onto the dance floor.

Things got serious after this as Kerri introduced MAWO co-chair Alison Bodine, residing in New York, via video recording. Alison, who is a US citizen and was banned for two years from Canada in November 2007, greeted the crowd and explained about her case and about different antiwar activities taking place on the other coast of the continent.

This mix of politics and culture took another dynamic turn as Brittany from Ephin Clothing came up next to share some of her hip hop. With the crowd up showing their dance moves the next act came up, MAWO hip hop favourite Speeches Beyond. With his family and friends by his side, Speeches had the crowd on its feet. And this set the stage for the final act of the night, the Groundbreakers hip hop crew. The rhymes and the cheers could be heard all down Commercial Drive in East Vancouver as the night was taken away.

Different organizers, hip hop lovers, and art fans left the night with energy and a good night behind them. This break from the political forums and rallies is an important part of the antiwar movement as it allowed for different people to talk, meet, and learn more about culture and art as a tool of resistance.