HISTORY
George Harrison and the Concert for Bangladesh
“The only real wealth comes from helping others.” — Cesar Chavez
This summer a friend loaned me his copy of the Concert for Bangladesh DVD, which I wasted no time consuming.
This 1971 concert had profound impact on many people, and became a prototype of similar socially conscious efforts by performers who realized they could leverage their “star power” to make a difference in the broader world.
The tragedy of Bangladesh was two-fold. The first was a destructive cyclone of historic proportions that devastated the country and left as many as 500,000 dead in its wake. Because East Pakistan was located 1000 miles from Pakistan there had been an ongoing move for liberation even before this tragedy. The Pakistani government, however, did not send aid or help East Pakistan/Bangladesh.
Ironically, the United States could have provided aid but instead chose to turn its back on the matter because Pakistan was an ally in the Cold War. Our leaders, this being the Nixon era, did not wish to “embarrass” an ally.
