Marie Daulne - Humanitarianism and Activism

Humanitarianism and Activism

An active humanitarian, Daulne devotes much of her time working to protect human rights and fight global poverty with organizations such as Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders, CARE, and the United Nations. In 1993 Zap Mama was asked to sing a commercial for Coca-Cola and Daulne's initial response was no. However Daulne had second thoughts. "But we do like Robin Hood," Daulne said. "I thought there is money there that can go to help people. I see poor people and think, 'Maybe one day when Zap Mama is over, I can help people.' Then I thought, I can help people now." Zap Mama made the commercial and used the money to help build a school in Africa.

"I am here to fight for peace," says Daulne. "I grew up in a country where there were mostly white people and they always pointed out that I was different, that I was black. We shouldn't ignore the problems. But always shouting, 'There is a problem! There is a problem!' will not help us to arrive at a solution. I think about what I can do to bring an end to it, then I face the problem and attack it one step at a time." Daulne says that her music speaks for "the world that nobody wants to talk about - the disabled people. And people like us, we’re all looking for the best, we all have the same energies and mindset, and to remind us that it is not only our country and what TV tells us…we need to travel and open our mind and not follow especially the system, the manipulation of the politics that bring us fear. If we know what’s going on in this world, we see by our eyes and still with our bodies we can start to think about ourselves. This is what I want to see."