16 Aug 2012

UN / BEYONCE

American singer Beyonce, who has joined forces with the United Nations to promote World Humanitarian Day (19 August), talks about her motivation and hopes for the campaign.

Posted at: August 16, 2012 2:06 pm

Duration: 05:08

Available in: SD, HD

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Full script

STORY: UN / BEYONCE
TRT: 5.08
SOURCE: OCHA / UNTV
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 10 AUGUST 2012, NEW YORK / FILE

SHOTLIST:

10 AUGUST 2012, NEW YORK CITY

1. Various shots:
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"So Beyoncé how did you get involved in World Humanitarian Day?"
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"Well I heard about World Humanitarian Day, and I heard this would be the fourth year, and I was definitely attracted to raising awareness of this day of recognition. I found out that 22 people lost their lives helping people, and..."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"In Baghdad, in the explosion."
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"… in Baghdad, yes, and I thought it was such an incredible thing to try to turn that into something positive and to try to include the world into doing something great for someone else."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"In the song that you're dedicating to this, 'I was here', I mean what's the message of the song?"
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"'I was here', it says I want to leave my footprints in the sands of time. And that's leaving our mark on the world. We all want to know that our life meant something. And that we did something for someone else. And that we spread positivity, no matter how big or how small. So the song was perfect for World Humanitarian Day."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"And is that what you want too, to spread positivity?" 
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"Absolutely. I feel like we all have our purpose, and we all have our strengths. It feels so wonderful to do something for someone else."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"Valerie, you're trying to reach a billion people on World Humanitarian Day. What are you hoping to accomplish? I mean, what's the idea behind it?"
SOUNDBITE (English) Valerie Amos, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs:
"Well there are millions of people around the world who need help. And part of my job is to get the message out there. This is really about saying to everyone that this a day that's both a commemoration, because there are a lot of people who lose their lives trying to help people, but it's also a celebration of the things that people do. There's an amazing amount that people do every single day that goes unrecognized."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"People watch the news, and they see the slaughter in Syria, they see the humanitarian crisis there now, they see what's happening in eastern Congo where millions of people have died over the years, and a lot of times people feel hopeless, and helpless. Valerie, how do you counteract that?"
SOUNDBITE (English) Valerie Amos, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs:
"Well that's the whole message that we're trying to get across today. We can make a difference, we can make a difference through a small act. Some people will give some money, that helps, too. Some people have a skill they can donate, some time they can donate. All of that matters. And I think it's important to say to people that we're not helpless. Yes, there's a huge amount of suffering in the world, it's very, very painful to see. But one of the things that keeps me going is that every single person I meet, however desperate their situation, they have something that they want to live for. And they want us to help them to get back to a normal life."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"So on August 19th you're both hoping that people around the world will do whatever they can, will volunteer in their communities, will donate money, will donate time, whatever it is."
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"Absolutely. We're hoping everyone will go to whdiwashere.org and we want to encourage everyone to pledge their act of kindness."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"And they can actually put down what they're going to do or what they've done."
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"Absolutely."
SOUNDBITE (English) Valerie Amos, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs:
"And I hope it isn't just the 19th of August."
 SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"Yes."
SOUNDBITE (English) Valerie Amos, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs:
"I mean, this is about launching a campaign that will live on beyond the 19th of August, and of course next year on the 19th of August we can go back and say to people, this is what happened during the year, and hope that they'll pledge for another year."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"It is inspiring because in the wake of hurricane Katrina you had a foundation which tried to help people in New Orleans…"
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"The Survivor Foundation."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"Yeah, and you had food drives in your concerts, and it's amazing I think in New Orleans to me the example of what happened after Katrina, we've seen it in Haiti as well, is the power of individuals stepping up. I mean so many church groups, and NGOs, and just individuals have gone down to New Orleans in the Gulf Coast to lend a hand, to build a house, to do whatever they can. It's really inspiring."   
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"It really is. We built transitional housing for a lot of the survivors in Katrina, which I think was important, because people need to get on their feet. And it's more than just one day, it's something that, you know people need help all the time. And I feel like one great thing about the video, hopefully people will see it and it will be a reminder that every single day the smallest thing helps."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"Do you hope to start doing more stuff with the UN, overseas, travelling?"
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"I would love to do more things with the UN. I'm learning so much and inspired completely. You know I just see women like Valerie, and people that dedicate their lives, and it makes you want to do more."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"So where should people go to find out more information, Valerie?"
SOUNDBITE (English) Valerie Amos, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs:
"whdiwashere.org. And it's all about putting down a pledge, big or small."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"And they can sign up and talk about the acts of kindness they're doing."
SOUNDBITE (English) Valerie Amos, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs:
"Over the year, you know the pin will appear, as people register what they've done, the pin will appear, so you look at the map of the world, and all these little pins I hope, will be flashing up in every single country in the world to demonstrate what ordinary people are doing."
SOUNDBITE (English) Anderson Cooper, Interviewer: 
"That'll be a great legacy for you to be able to look back on."
SOUNDBITE (English), Beyoncé Knowles, Singer:
"Absolutely, yes it will be, for everyone. And it makes me really, really proud."

STORYLINE:

On Sunday's World Humanitarian Day, Beyoncé Knowles will probably be glued to her computer, checking the results of a campaign that aims to make social media history.

The American singer has joined forces with the United Nations in an attempt to reach one billion people on 19 August to celebrate World Humanitarian Day by doing at least one act of kindness, or good works.  As of today (16 August), the campaign has reached more than 175 million.

In an interview recorded at UN headquarters ahead of the Day, Beyoncé told television journalist Anderson Cooper she got involved with the campaign to help boost recognition of humanitarian work after hearing about the UN humanitarian workers killed on 19 August nine years ago by a bomb in Baghdad. She decided it was "an incredible thing to try to turn that into something positive and to try to include the world into doing something great for someone else."

In 2008, the UN General Assembly designated 19 August World Humanitarian Day to raise public awareness of humanitarian assistance worldwide, recognize people who risk their lives to help people in need, and to mark the day in 2003 when 22 people lost their lives in an attack on the UN offices in Baghdad, Iraq.

Beyoncé has donated a song entitled "I Was Here" to the campaign. The video of the song, which she recorded in front of a live audience in the UN's historic General Assembly Hall last week, will be released on Sunday.

The singer said her song's message was that she wanted to "leave my footprints in the sands of time", adding that "we all want to know that our life meant something. And that we did something for someone else. And that we spread positivity, no matter how big or how small."

Asked about the idea behind the campaign for World Humanitarian Day, the top UN humanitarian official, Valerie Amos said 19 August was "both a commemoration, because there are a lot of people who lose their lives trying to help people, but it's also a celebration of the things that people do".

Amos said a main message was not to be discouraged by the "huge amount of suffering in the world", including in places like Syria or the Democratic Republic of Congo, but to recognize that "we're not helpless."

Beyoncé urged people to go to the website www.whdiwashere.org and pledge an "act of kindness", for example by volunteering in their communities, or donating time or money.

She added her hope that the campaign would reach beyond just one day, since "people need help all the time". Speaking about her own activities helping survivors of hurricane Katrina rebuild their lives, she said she hoped her video would help remind people that "every single day the smallest thing helps".

Asked whether she hoped to do more with the UN, she said she "would love to", as she was "learning so much and inspired completely."

Communities and organizations across the globe will celebrate World Humanitarian Day through commemorations and public events, from Dubai to Geneva, Bangkok to Panama City and Addis Ababa to New York, according to UN officials.