#SoulFest

[reasoningdaily]

GPB News: Civil rights groups condemn 'Soul Fest' concerts at Georgia park with giant Confederate carving

Civil rights groups are criticizing a concert series with Black performers dubbed "Soul Fest" that is being held at a Georgia park replete with Confederate imagery, including a giant carving of Confederate leaders.

Stone Mountain Park just outside Atlanta is where the Ku Klux Klan marked its rebirth in 1915. Its colossal, mountainside sculpture of Gen. Robert E. Lee, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson is the largest Confederate monument ever crafted and has special protection enshrined in Georgia law.

The park has taken steps in recent years to try to soften its Confederate legacy and promote itself as a family site, but civil rights groups have said the moves fall way short of what's needed.

The "Soul Fest" concert series is a way to "normalize and sanitize" the hateful message of the park, said Atlanta NAACP President Richard Rose.

"They're saying, 'This is OK. Get used to it. It's cool,'" he said in a phone interview on Thursday.

Rose said he encouraged two of the bands to pull out of the event, but they told him they were under contract, and their music brings people together.

"The music can't bring people together in front of this icon of the Confederacy," he said.

Emails to the park and its management company, Thrive Attractions, were not immediately returned. In a news release earlier this month, the park promoted Soul Fest as a new event that would allow families to experience a "full day of fun." An ad for the event on the park's website featured a photo of a smiling Black man and Black woman on a lawn.

The event, which runs from Thursday night through Sunday night, features rhythm and blues groups, a gospel singer and a Prince cover band.

It's a "bad faith effort" to distance the park from the Confederacy, said Rivka Maizlish, a researcher with the Southern Poverty Law Center.

"It's an effort to pretend that the park is for everyone while still maintaining this massive symbol of white supremacy," she said. Some supporters of the carving say it is a tribute to their ancestors who fought in the Civil War, not a celebration of white power.

The park 15 miles (25 kilometers) northeast of downtown Atlanta attracts large numbers of tourists and other visitors interested in hiking to the top of the mountain, walking the grounds or seeing a light show. In 2021, the park's board voted to relocate Confederate flags from a busy walking trail and create a museum exhibit that relates the history of the site and the carving, which was completed in 1972 amid resistance to the civil rights movement and desegregation by Georgia and other Southern states.

The changes approved by the board came amid a national reckoning on race that brought down dozens of Confederate monuments in 2020.

The park, however, still maintains the giant carving, which measures 190 feet (58 meters) across and 90 feet (27 meters) tall. The Soul Fest concerts will take place on a lawn that faces the monument just months after a Confederate group gathered there.

"It's just so beyond obnoxious and disgusting and gross that they're hosting these artists now and trying to pull in a different audience," said Brian Morris, a member of the Stone Mountain Action Coalition, an advocacy group that has called on the park to stop maintaining the carving.

[poeticdevastation]

what's your favorite dog breed and why? are they simply visually appealing? do you like their temperament? or their loyalty?

and what would you name your puppy if you had one …

૮( ˃ ꒳ ˂)ა

◟/づ🦴

I had a more thorough response written weeks ago when I first got this ask, but fsr it was deleted n' then my phone broke while at a concert so I haven't been as active. Sorry ya'll.

I honestly have too many favorites to count, but I certainly have some I admire n' adore more than others; but I believe in my heart n' soul that all these little furry friends are created equal in some way or another.

Shepherds, huskies, danes, boxers, spaniels, St. Bernards... I especially seem to have a fondness for rottweilers, bulls/pits, n' hokkaido inu. ...I also enjoy a cavalier, samoyed, shiba inu or corgi now n' then, but don't...;; don't go sharin' that with everybody, aight?

It usually depends more on their loyalty- as you mentioned, yep.

Any dog is a good dog. Full-stop. You train them, you love them... but even if they have a rough time- pun not intended- that doesn't mean they're goin' out of their way to be a "bad dog"; in fact, a lotta the time they've probably just been through some tough experiences in the past that made it hard to trust others. ...Maybe that's why I feel like I resonate with them, hah.

Oh man, a name??

Cora Akira Damian Tadashi Tim Kioko Hiro Stephanie Jim Koa Jason Kealoha Bruce Duke Roxana, Hoshiko, Sterling, or Sorin ("Little Star")

If you noticed patterns with any of these, good for you. Have a wafer.

[posttexasstressdisorder]

Another Psychedelic SoulFest from 1970-71

[babyquinoa]

Soulfest 2024

[purplecuriosityblog]

SoulFest `14

The first ever Soul Festival in Australia, Sydney was one I can not forget. The music, ambiance, people and food was exciting! It’s not like any festival that I’ve been to. At the start my boyfriend and I stood at the very front, we got there heaps early (but unfortunately left early too). So I can finally say that I’ve stood at the front for some performances. I’ll upload more pictures that I…

[seattlereddit]

Come Experience Yoga & Meditation @ Soulfest!

https://www.reddit.com/r/SeattleWA/comments/19e34wv/come_experience_yoga_meditation_soulfest/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=tumblr

[blakhanside00]

Georgia NAACP Upset About 'Soulfest' Held At Confederate Monument

[emperorbigdaddydrip]

The News of The People - Episode #192: "The FGCU Soulflowers Are Hosting The Soulfest 2023 This Friday"

Here's a word from the FGCU Soulflower (@fgcusoulflowers ) :

"SoulFest is here! 🌻

Join the FGCU Soulflowers NEXT FRIDAY for our annual health awareness festival on March 31st, from 7-9 PM on the Library Lawn!!

There will be food , free STI testing ,music by DJ Jazzy Jeff 🎶, a photo booth 📸, performances 💃🏽, and more! If possible we ask that you wear red in solidarity❣️. SEE YOU ALL NEXT FRIDAY!

If you’re still interested in tabling, performing, or volunteering, sign up with the link in our bio!"

Thank you guys so much for you time! Make sure you pull up to the YouTube Channel (“Zachariah White”) to check out the good stuff!

Social Media Links:

YouTube - Zachariah White Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2SRMW7OUNCX8dHjdtfwjLg

Facebook - Zachariah White Link: https://www.facebook.com/NerdySuperman/

Twitter - @PS3XBOX360Game1 Link: https://twitter.com/PS3XBOX360Game1

NEW Instagram - KingBigDaddyDrip Link: https://www.instagram.com/kingbigdaddydrip/

Snapchat - King Senor Blanco (drpolitician)

SoundCloud - Big Daddy Drip Link: https://soundcloud.com/zachariah-white-251981857

Spotify - Zachariah White or "The Royal High Table" Link: https://open.spotify.com/show/5S5V9z2JP5w1UNLbCPhYZT

Anchor - Zachariah White or "The Royal High Table" Link: https://anchor.fm/zachariah-white

#zachariahwhite #ZachariahTrevonWhite #kingwhite #emperorwhite #theblueempire #blueempire #BigDaddyDrip #KingBigDaddyDrip #EmperorBigDaddyDrip #thenewsofthepeople #TNOTP #thejuiceneverstopsdripping

[bbarkerfilmfestivals2022]

REFERENCES

FilmFreeway. (2019). S.O.U.L. Celebrate Connect. [online] Available at: https://filmfreeway.com/SOULFest.

FilmFreeway. (n.d.). Sight of Sound Film Festival. [online] Available at: https://filmfreeway.com/SightOfSound [Accessed 31 Jan. 2023].

FilmFreeway. (n.d.). SOUND On SCREEN Music Film Festival. [online] Available at: https://filmfreeway.com/SoundOnScreen [Accessed 31 Jan. 2023].

http://www.fuel.ie, C. by F. ie in D. (n.d.). Doc’n Roll Film Festival - About Us. [online] www.docnrollfestival.com. Available at: https://www.docnrollfestival.com/about/.

[manjmusik]

Tweeted

RT @UmairFarook: A food festival in #Lahore only gets better with a live performance on Punjabi bhangra music - RDB @MANJmusik was really good at it ⚡🔥 #SoulFest https://t.co/4CJB0dxCeO

— MANJmusik (@MANJmusik) Jan 6, 2023

[lserver362reviews]

At this point, just shy of reading the play myself, I have consumed most of what I could about this movie before seeing it. I was visiting family in Rhode Island for the New Year and decided I didn't want to wait to see it at the end of the month in Vermont. I wanted to start the year with my Brendan Fraser Film Completionist status in tact. I also wanted to go alone for this viewing. I think that years of Catholicism does a massive brain shaping and it's very apparent in Aronofsky's films. I get the internalized Catholicism that goes into his movies. Maybe there's a connection between this and the attraction to trauma. As prepared as I was, two packs of tissues in hand, there were times during the film when I said, wow, he really did it. Aronofsky has made a film about second hand religious trauma. As much as this film is being talked about in regards to fatphobia, it seems to me the real aim is a discussion of homophobia. I was extremely taken by the character of Allan, his story, his tragedy. My biggest personal gripe about my time in organized religion was the focus on escaping the reality we're in. At 'New England's Largest Christian Music Festival' (Soulfest) I quite literally remember seeing a booth entitled, "Starve the Flesh" and they handed out tattoos that, I'll admit, looked metal af, but they looked like a razor carving and the impact of that still shakes me to this day. American society has a lot of faults, one being the focus on individualism, but also the obsession with the physical self. Fatphobia effects us all, at any size and it is everywhere. Maybe it's because I've not only struggled with my weight, my body image, my sexuality, my self esteem, but I've also just struggled to remain in this body at times, and always been interested in human's relationship to food and addiction, all coupled with the religion my life has been founded on, and so, this movie scratched a particular itch for me. Now, back to Allan's story. This is a gay man, raised in a church (considered cult-like), ostracized by his family, and yet he still had his bible on his bookshelf, annotated no less. He kept a white mug with a blue crucifix on it that Charlie now has kept in Allan's absence. This is a man who never lost his faith. And it ruined him. He starved himself, on a bible verse that pits the soul against the flesh. The ultimate struggle of existence is to balance this idea that we are more than corporeal and to have a relationship with the creator while we're still in this form. Allan's faith rejected him, but he never rejected his faith. I am astounded by that writing and conveyance in this film. Then we have everyone else picking up the pieces of that truth. I had read about reactions to Liz's character, and my expectation was absolutely blasted apart. I see her as a fully justified character. My mom lost her brother due to suicide. I know the way that trauma can make someone over compensate in really perplexed ways, especially when the inverse of someone's demise is someone else's addiction. Anyone who writes Liz off as simply an enabler has a thin understanding of what it is to be in relationship with an addict and/or the impacts of losing someone to suicide. At many times I was reminded that this is a play but that never got in the way of the story that was being told, and I haven't even gotten to Brendan Fraser yet. I watched all of his movies from 2021-2022, and the biggest take away from seeing every role was that, no matter the content, he has a way of infusing a genuine spirit of life into his characters. They're never without authentic life, and that's a bit of weird ask when it comes to acting. I found Charlie to be completely disarming. The little wink he gives to Thomas was perfection. Charlie's bungled in many many ways which I'll get into, but I will say his wit absolutely caught me off guard. He's clever, he's a writer. I wish we knew what his connection to religion was. I sometimes forget how tall Brendan Fraser is, and I had heard complaints of the score, and I'd agree with the overscoring in the first moments we see Charlie stand up, and then at the end (which the final moments I despised). The moments of monologue were exceptional and this movie was absolutely carried by Brendan Fraser. I don't think anyone else could have done it. I don't care if he gets an oscar, or even nominated. I've seen him do this role and that simply speaks for itself. This movie isn't what a lot of people, including myself to an extent, wish it was. I wish we had a movie that opened up how vile and insidious fatphobia is, but this wasn't that. We see Charlie as a happy fat person with Allan in a photo, and when he sees it he is still incredibly hurt by his loss. I don't think movies should undercut, as Sam Hunter has said, "hard-earned hope" and this movie doesn't. I don't think Charlie is a bad character. I think he has developed coping skills, his binge-eating and his positive outlook. In Everything Everywhere All At Once, a multiverse Waymund states, so beautifully, "You tell me that it’s a cruel world, and we’re all just running around in circles. I know that. I’ve been on this earth just as many days as you. When I choose to see the good side of things, I’m not being naïve. It’s strategic and necessary. It’s how I’ve learned to survive through everything. I know you see yourself as a fighter. Well, I see myself as one too. This is how I fight." That's Charlie. He uses hyperbole so often because he so desperately wants to believe it. He wants to say it and make it honest. I love a character this complex. Charlie is running from a past and ending up deluding himself. We see this best with Ellie. I didn't mind Sadie Sink's at times psychotic performance. I think I can empathize with her rage, looking back on my own family's unraveling when I was 15. I do think she's evil, but I think that to pretend that everyone is ultimately good and there isn't deep hurt one can do to their own soul is the kind of dangerous positivity we see in Charlie. I was very struck by Liz's statement that we can't save people. I agree with her but I also see our being here (once again the struggle for the balance) as to care for one another. How do we love when we know we can't save? Maybe salvation requires the love of others, especially to bolster love for ourselves. We can't save, but we can share. Once again, I am left with love for Allan and what he and Charlie shared together. I was reminded this is rural Idaho, especially when Samantha Morton's character came into the story. I felt that Thomas' character was the least interesting and I do not trust his parents one bit, and believe he is ill-fated. Once again, Ellie might be evil. But that is the damage of undealt with trauma. I don't know if I'll ever truly sort out my thoughts on my relationship to food, but I believe that it's morally neutral. Charlie's coping and dealing with his trauma has manifested through binge-eating. I don't need the movie to remind me that this story isn't trying to reach universals of people who are fat. Not everyone who is fat has trauma and that's the A to B, cause and effect. I don't think that this means we shouldn't see body diversity in media. I think this is a first step and was handled pretty well. Now let's truly move away from using massive body suits and get age appropriate and size appropriate casting. To me, this movie is about the religious trauma of a gay person. That needs to be sorted out in this country, not because it led to Charlie being fat which he should be demonized for, but because we never get to meet Allan, just the ones who love him who were left behind.

Freddie Prinze Jr wrote some wonderful words about Fatherhood due to this movie and that should be read: www.interviewmagazine.com/film/brendan-fraser-and-freddie-prinze-jr-on-trauma-and-transformation

[chakaikhan]

#SOULFEST at Town Point Park, Norfolk VA this past weekend 📸 by @nsightz #ChakaKhan 🎼💜 (at Norfolk, Virginia) https://www.instagram.com/p/B3DM8ifhBQg/?igshid=2wllairjuy4g

[coffeeman777]

[kyeraworld]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kyera Keenne (@kyeraworld)

It is pretty friggen' amazing to be popping up on all these popular #spotifyplaylist #spotify #soulfest by @ChristopherSackett https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2BvZKBYlYiGBLastIzoin1 #inspiring by @thefreshten https://open.spotify.com/playlist/765uVarzYeGluHDTJetUSe #discoverhits by @Joshroybal https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7hpT53mFZkr98prkzH5CAm #prettylittlethings by @thefreshten https://open.spotify.com/playlist/19Ywz35KzNR0IgX1pJWgxd #Editorschoicecutz.risingstars by @thefreshten https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2gFHzx2I5uRVBrl8fpHk3d (at New York, New York) https://www.instagram.com/p/BtWHNKLAF3y/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=x8ajvtuz8you

[seattlereddit]

SoulFest is Here! Dance, Meditate & Revitalize 2024 Resolutions!

https://www.reddit.com/r/SeattleWA/comments/191aj77/soulfest_is_here_dance_meditate_revitalize_2024/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=tumblr

[ezraercolini-blog]

07.31.18 - 08.05.18

Soulfest // Gilford, NH

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Epic Season

Toby Mac and Diverse City

Big Daddy Weave

For King and Country

Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

Skillet