Latest news with #Ugandan-born
Irish Independent
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Singer to perform for King at VE Day concert held near his former busking spot
Four days of celebration across the nation began on Monday to mark 80 years since victory in Europe was declared in the Second World War. Concluding the celebrations on Thursday evening, the Ugandan-born musician, raised in Newcastle, will perform Nat King Cole's Smile alongside a 45-piece orchestra and 30-person choir at Horse Guards Parade in London. The concert's location is close to Piccadilly Circus, which is where Ray used to busk while launching his music career. Ray said: 'I mean, when you think about it, it's crazy. I used to sing on the streets just up the road from here. To be performing at this event, on this stage, is a moment I genuinely never saw coming.' He added: 'I am so grateful to be part of this historic event, and singing such a classic song to remember the moment the Second World War ended. It's a real honour to be a part of the celebrations.' Actor Timothy Spall began VE Day commemorations in London on Monday by reading extracts of then prime minister Sir Winston Churchill's victory speech to the nation on May 8 1945. Monday also saw a military procession and flypast in central London as well as a street party held at Downing Street. UK Government buildings and departments will remember and thank those who fought with a silence at noon on Thursday, with other organisations invited to follow suit. Pubs and bars have been granted permission to stay open for longer to mark the anniversary. Venues in England and Wales which usually close at 11pm will be able to keep serving for an extra two hours to celebrate. Churches and cathedrals across the country will ring their bells as a collective act of thanksgiving at 6.30pm, echoing the sounds that swept across the country in 1945, the Church of England said. The VE Day party, presented by Zoe Ball, will air on May 8 from 8pm to 10pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
Business Mayor
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Business Mayor
Joyous junkyard beauties: how Leilah Babirye fled death to create towering works of togetherness
I n 2022, two wooden sculptures stood on the riverbanks of Brooklyn. Configured as bodies with multiple heads, the monumental works – part of a larger group titled Agali Awamu, which translates as 'Togetherness' – towered over those who interacted with them. They appeared as an antidote to the silver, white or green reflective buildings that stood behind them: hand-carved and human-like, with mouths that appeared to be singing or whistling, and eyes barely open, perhaps to signify a joyous introspection. While one was made up of two bodies conjoined at the hip, the other had billowing hair and carried faces on its back and belly, which seemed to be singing in harmony. The sculptures looked peaceful, and protective of each other and of those who walked past them. From far away these figures, created by the Ugandan-born, New York-based artist Leilah Babirye, looked regal. They stood tall, adorned with glistening belts and jewellery. But up close, you noticed that their ornaments were made up of rusty chains, old wire, used bolts and bicycle parts – objects once discarded, deemed as meaningless, but whose beauty had been noticed by the artist. She reused them for a celebratory monument of power and protection. Valuing what's thrown away … Leilah Babirye in 2022. Photograph: David Benthal/ Babirye is known for recycling discarded items for her sculptures. Consider it a metaphor for how she and her LGBTQ+ community have been treated in her native Uganda, where being queer is still punishable by death. After the country's anti-homosexuality bill was passed in 2013, and the artist was publicly outed in the homophobic Ugandan press, Babirye fled to the US to seek asylum, having initially been awarded a residency on Fire Island, New York. Read More Chinese dancing frog goes viral doing the worm Using art to upend negative stereotypes and challenge dismissive remarks, Babirye's huge sculptures stand up to the silencing of her communities, transforming rubbish into a site of possibility: recycling pens and bottle-caps to make a crown; evoking long hair with an old bike chain. 'When you look at trash, it's something that everybody throws out,' she told me. 'It's something that doesn't hold any value any more to a person who considers it trash at that particular time […] So the only way to bring the value of us – the 'trash' – is by showing how important we are, how vocal we can be, how professional we can be, and how talented we are.' Part of the exhibition Leilah Babirye: We Have a History in San Francisco in 2024. Photograph: Gary Sexton/courtesy of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco I thought of Babirye's sculptures – that can range from single heads and talismans to giant ceramic clan-like communities – in the wake of the UK supreme court's ruling that trans women are not recognised as women, nor trans men as men, under the 2010 Equality Act. The judgment has not only caused distraction from other urgent court rulings and news, but will inflate culture wars and boost violence towards an already extremely vulnerable group who make up less than 1% of the population. Trans communities have existed, and always will. It's more important than ever to champion, promote and celebrate them The ruling will surely have a detrimental health and emotional impact on trans and non-binary people, and could force public organisations to change their policies on inclusion and single-sex spaces in ways that puts trans people at risk. But, as the artist Victoria Cantons reminds me, the decision is also 'a gateway for more control on women' and will 'push women's and men's roles into more binary structures, which will be detrimental for women's rights in general'. She also pointed out that not a single trans group was even heard on the panel before the decision was made. Read More Regular 'check-ins' under new bar chief's wellbeing drive While our prime minister and government have become increasingly hostile to trans rights since being elected, the fact is that trans communities have existed, and always will. It's more important than ever to champion, promote and celebrate them – echoing the spirit of last weekend's protests, which were peaceful and full of love. Art can be a powerful way to promote the voices of those who aren't being heard in society, but also as a tool for helping us see the beauty, possibility and basic humanity in each other. I am reminded of something that the artist Martha Rosler – who, like Babirye, works in collage, assembling images and objects that create new possibilities – once told me: 'This habit of division, of breaking things apart, holds us back from being whole people, and from building a whole society. On this spinning blue marble we all share, there is no 'here' or 'there'. As a species, our destinies are increasingly intertwined: we are one. Cooperation isn't just wise; it's essential. And recognising that isn't just important; it's crucial.'How can anyone look at Babirye's Togetherness and not want unity rather than division?
RNZ News
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
Comedian Anisa Nandaula
Comedian Anisa Nandaula is peforming her show You Can't Say to New Zealand at the NZ International Comedy Festival during May. Photo: Supplied What's it like being a black woman in Australia? Ugandan-born Queenslander and standup comedian Anisa Nandaula knows all too well. Her current show You Can't Say That explores the challenges she's faced in a new country and how, on arrival, she expected a multicultural society - but instead found herself face-to-face with farm animals. She has been nominated for best newcomer at the Melbourne Comedy Festival and performs three Auckland shows for the New Zealand International Comedy Festival during May. Ahead of her Auckland gigs, Anisa Nandaula speaks with Mihi about her approach to comedy and using laughter to tackle life's challenges.
The Guardian
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Joyous junkyard beauties: how Leilah Babirye fled death to create towering works of togetherness
In 2022, two wooden sculptures stood on the riverbanks of Brooklyn. Configured as bodies with multiple heads, the monumental works – part of a larger group titled Agali Awamu, which translates as 'Togetherness' – towered over those who interacted with them. They appeared as an antidote to the silver, white or green reflective buildings that stood behind them: hand-carved and human-like, with mouths that appeared to be singing or whistling, and eyes barely open, perhaps to signify a joyous introspection. While one was made up of two bodies conjoined at the hip, the other had billowing hair and carried faces on its back and belly, which seemed to be singing in harmony. The sculptures looked peaceful, and protective of each other and of those who walked past them. From far away these figures, created by the Ugandan-born, New York-based artist Leilah Babirye, looked regal. They stood tall, adorned with glistening belts and jewellery. But up close, you noticed that their ornaments were made up of rusty chains, old wire, used bolts and bicycle parts – objects once discarded, deemed as meaningless, but whose beauty had been noticed by the artist. She reused them for a celebratory monument of power and protection. Babirye is known for recycling discarded items for her sculptures. Consider it a metaphor for how she and her LGBTQ+ community have been treated in her native Uganda, where being queer is still punishable by death. After the country's anti-homosexuality bill was passed in 2013, and the artist was publicly outed in the homophobic Ugandan press, Babirye fled to the US to seek asylum, having initially been awarded a residency on Fire Island, New York. Using art to upend negative stereotypes and challenge dismissive remarks, Babirye's huge sculptures stand up to the silencing of her communities, transforming rubbish into a site of possibility: recycling pens and bottle-caps to make a crown; evoking long hair with an old bike chain. 'When you look at trash, it's something that everybody throws out,' she told me. 'It's something that doesn't hold any value any more to a person who considers it trash at that particular time […] So the only way to bring the value of us – the 'trash' – is by showing how important we are, how vocal we can be, how professional we can be, and how talented we are.' I thought of Babirye's sculptures – that can range from single heads and talismans to giant ceramic clan-like communities – in the wake of the UK supreme court's ruling that trans women are not recognised as women, nor trans men as men, under the 2010 Equality Act. The judgment has not only caused distraction from other urgent court rulings and news, but will inflate culture wars and boost violence towards an already extremely vulnerable group who make up less than 1% of the population. The ruling will surely have a detrimental health and emotional impact on trans and non-binary people, and could force public organisations to change their policies on inclusion and single-sex spaces in ways that puts trans people at risk. But, as the artist Victoria Cantons reminds me, the decision is also 'a gateway for more control on women' and will 'push women's and men's roles into more binary structures, which will be detrimental for women's rights in general'. She also pointed out that not a single trans group was even heard on the panel before the decision was made. While our prime minister and government have become increasingly hostile to trans rights since being elected, the fact is that trans communities have existed, and always will. It's more important than ever to champion, promote and celebrate them – echoing the spirit of last weekend's protests, which were peaceful and full of love. Art can be a powerful way to promote the voices of those who aren't being heard in society, but also as a tool for helping us see the beauty, possibility and basic humanity in each other. I am reminded of something that the artist Martha Rosler – who, like Babirye, works in collage, assembling images and objects that create new possibilities – once told me: 'This habit of division, of breaking things apart, holds us back from being whole people, and from building a whole society. On this spinning blue marble we all share, there is no 'here' or 'there'. As a species, our destinies are increasingly intertwined: we are one. Cooperation isn't just wise; it's essential. And recognising that isn't just important; it's crucial.'How can anyone look at Babirye's Togetherness and not want unity rather than division?
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘Zohran Mamdani represents the future New York': socialist riding high in bid to be mayor
Can a 33-year-old cricket-playing socialist, who wants to freeze rent, make city transport free and once aspired to be a rapper win an already turbulent election to become the next mayor of New York? Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist and state assembly member in Queens, has been the surprise package in the Democratic primary and is now poised to take on the frontrunner in the race, ex-state governor Andrew Cuomo, who is mounting a political comeback after being forced from office in the face of a series of sexual harassment claims. A recent poll of Democratic voters placed Cuomo at 64%, supported mainly by older New Yorkers, and Mamdani at 36%. But with scandal-plagued incumbent Eric Adams sitting out the primary– he may run as an independent – the Ugandan-born Mamdani is in with a chance under a new ranked-choice voting system. 'Zohran is breaking away as a clear second place and the alternative to the disgraced ex-governor Andrew Cuomo whose campaign is a house of cards,' Mamdani spokesperson Andrew Epstein told the Gothamist news site last week. He added that the campaign has been successful so far by 'being everywhere all of the time,' with more than 10,000 volunteers knocking on more than 100,000 doors, and by pushing out a platform of affordability, of rent freezes, free metro transport and city-run grocery stores – as well as the creation of a department of community safety to invest in citywide mental health programs and crisis response. Mamdani's emergence as a viable candidate comes as another New York Democrat Socialist, congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, currently on a packed-out 'Fighting Oligarchy' tour of the US, is being touted as the new face of the national party. Mamdani 'represents the city of the future – a more Asian city, a more Muslim city, and what could be a more leftwing city,' says Democrat campaign veteran Hank Sheinkopf. With New York City containing about 800,000 Muslims, with 350,000 believed to be registered to vote, this could be the year that they show their power. 'Every group shows its power in New York at some point because urban power in the US is all about competition for resources,' Sheinkopf adds. Mamdani is the son of Mira Nair, the Academy Award nominated film director of Salaam Bombay!; his father, Mahmood Mamdani, is a professor at Columbia who studies colonialism. Around the family dinner table they would discuss Darfur and other political topics. Before running for office, Mamdani worked as a counsellor, a rapper under the name 'Mr. Cardamom' and as a cricketer. As a lawmaker, he's introduced a bill to eliminate tax exemptions for the city's biggest universities, Columbia and NYU, arguing that the tax funds should go to underfunded public universities; and has said there is a 'ceiling' on the power of representation in identity politics because 'people cannot feed themselves and their family on someone looking like them'. When the Observer caught up with him at an anti-Tesla protest, he said 'it was important that when we turn the page on Elon Musk, we also turn the page on all those who empowered and emboldened the accumulation of this kind of wealth through public policy and public subsidy'. Mamdani said New Yorkers 'have a role to play in fighting back against the wealthiest man in the world, who has purchased the president of the United States. It's critically important that we do so, and we show ourselves standing alongside New Yorkers from all walks of life who are saying that this cannot happen on our watch and our dime.' But key to Mamdani's candidacy may be that he's a good communicator, appearing in comedy clubs, grocery stores, diving into the freezing Atlantic on New Year's Day to illustrate his rent freeze proposal and talking to New Yorkers about why they voted for Trump; and going virtually anywhere to meet young voters that, as Gothamist noted, 'need a jolt to stop doomscrolling'. In short, he's on a mission, alongside Ocasio-Cortez, to revive the Democrats as the Trump presidency marks 100 days in office next week. But New York is also home to the largest Jewish population outside Israel, and Mamdani has faced criticism for accusing Israel of committing American-funded genocide in Gaza. Cuomo, a moderate Democrat, has gone to great lengths to portray antisemitism as a central campaign issue, calling it 'the most serious and the most important issue' in New York , and portraying himself as a 'hyper aggressive supporter of Israel and proud of it'. Mamdani has the capacity to win, says Sheinkopf, but his anti-Israel stance could be a problem: 'Is Mamdani's run a worthwhile demonstration of how healthy a democracy is? Yes. But he's got to convince people his behaviour is within the bounds of what [they] consider appropriate.'
