Legendary singer/songwriter Yusuf / Cat Stevens has launched a campaign to help child refugees in Europe with a charity gig on June 14 at London’s Central Hall, Westminster, and the release of a unique single, He Was Alone.
Yusuf’s charity, Small Kindness is partnering with charities Save the Children and Penny Appeal to raise funds to help people who have made the perilous journey across the Mediterranean to Europe in search of safety. More than 1 million people arrived on European shores in 2015, including 95,000 children who were registered as travelling alone without their parents to care for them.
“While the world faces incomprehensible numbers and statistics created by the refugee crisis the tragedy and story of a single soul gets missed. It was difficult to stand by just watching this tragedy without trying to do something. I simply decided to help humanize the narrative and lend my voice to the call for keeping hearts and doors open to every refugee, especially youngsters, who have lost what future they might have once hoped for,” says Yusuf / Cat Stevens.
Many of the children who have risked everything to reach Europe know nothing more than conflict, violence and forced displacement. Their current deplorable conditions offer little hope for their futures as they waste the best years of their lives in refugee camps, detention centers and behind border fences and walls. As a result, refugee children are five times less likely to attend school than other children in the countries in which they are displaced, so Save the Children is calling for international governments to commit to ensuring that no child refugee is out of school for more than a month.
The support for this cause has also been strengthened by a growing list of celebrities and stars, including Ricky Gervais, Steve McQueen, Naomi Campbell, Emma Thompson, Pete Townsend, Bob Geldof, Gary Kemp, Naomie Harris, Ben Elton, Kim Kardashian West, Khloe Kardashian, Blondie, Jude Law, New Order, Eliza Doolittle, Ronan Keating, Sheryl Crow, Omid Djalili, Queen and Miley Cyrus’ Happy Hippie Foundation.
You can help the campaign by using the hashtag #youarenotalone on social media, buying a ticket for the concert or simply donating whatever possible towards the appeal at the following charities:
http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/about-us/emergencies/child-refugee-crisis-appeal
http://www.smallkindness.org.uk/
http://www.pennyappeal.org.uk/
——————————————————————————————————————————————
Never miss a story! Get your free Noise11.com daily music news email alert. Subscribe to the Noise11 Music Newsletter here
Listen to the Noise11 Music News channel now at iHeartRadio
Follow Noise11.com on Facebook and Twitter
NOISE11 UPDATES are now in Apple News
