Relentless rains during the first weekend of May forced the outdoor, family-friendly fest to pack up early—something the Athens Human Rights Festival had not done once in its 35-year history. The official rescheduling is proof that nothing can hold it down, not even Mother Nature. Live performances range from up-and-comers like Battle of the Bands winners Hart Sawyer & the Love Project and American Mannequins, to longtime local staples like String Theory and Michael Guthrie. In between sets, speakers representing various local organizations like the Georgia Conflict Center, Casa de Amistad and Project Safe will discuss current issues facing the community, offering several opportunities for audience members to ask questions or take over the microphone themselves. As always, information booths will line the perimeter of the square, and plenty of children’s activities will be available to keep the tiniest of activists occupied.
Schedule (live music in bold):
12 p.m. Festival Welcome Paul Lombard
12:30 p.m. Casa de Amistad (Brenda Nordgren) Georgia Conflict Center (John Lash) Open Mic
1:00 p.m. String Theory
1:45 p.m. Project Safe (April Byrne) Food Bank of NE Ga.
2:15 p.m. Hart Sawyer & the Love Project
2:45 p.m. Undocumented H.S. Students (Ian Altman) Jimmy Parr
3:15 p.m. American Mannequins
3:45 p.m. People for a Better Athens (Russell Edwards) GMOs (Todd Lister) Open Mic
4:10 p.m. Jimmy Parr
4:25 p.m. Green Party (Dan Everett) Open Mic
4:45 p.m. Shehehe
5:25 p.m. Occupy Athens Open Mic
5:40 p.m. Grim Pickins and the Bastard Congregation
6:15 p.m. Lee Kesieg Open Mic
6:30 p.m. Lowdive
7:15 p.m. Life (poet)
7:30 p.m. Michael Guthrie
8:15 p.m. Speaker/Open Mic
8:25 p.m. Gay Pride (Ricky Roberts)
8:40 p.m. Lacie and the Glitter Cabaret
9:20 p.m. Ed Tant
9:30 p.m. Cosmic Charlie
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