RE:ACT, a benefit concert for the UC Davis SOLD project, will be held tonight in the Davis Community Church on 412 C St. from 7 to 9 p.m.
The SOLD project is an organization that raises funds and awareness regarding the sex trafficking of children in Thailand. It also partners with organizations that provide educational and healthcare benefits to children and orphanages.
The Davis chapter of SOLD organized this concert in hopes of inspiring fellow students to aide the cause.
“Music is universal,” said Nicki Sun, a senior communication major who co-founded the club. “It takes off the tension of such a controversial issue. We want the audience to feel comfortable, while learning about the issues.”
The concert will feature local bands and recurring artists such as David Ronconi, Katie Jane, Gianna Biagi and Mickey Cho. Each artist is unique in their sound but united in their goal to spread the word on this global issue.
Although this is the club’s first year as an official club on campus, the members put on a previous event last year to see how the Davis community would receive the message.
“The documentary we showed last year was extremely successful and we were overwhelmed with the amount of [responses] we received,” said co-founder Christina Louie, an undeclared sophomore.
Because of that positive response, they organized themselves into an official club and started preparations for this year’s event last June.
The club’s ultimate goal is to raise $4,000 to buy a truck for the children in Thailand. This truck will be able to transport the children to and from their orphanages safely, decreasing their risk of becoming victims of sexual slavery.
Louie, who actually visited Thailand this summer with the SOLD project, said, “It’s hard for us to become aware because it’s such a global issue. But, Thailand is known as the number one sex tourism capital of the world.”
The club hopes to reach a wider audience of at least 300 people with this concert.
“The idea of a concert appeals to a larger crowd. Music is part of our culture and we hope to reach a larger group of people,” said club member Bailey Wong, a senior international relations and managerial business double major.
In order to raise enough money for the truck as well as several other resources for the kids in Thailand, the club members suggest a minimum $10 donation at the concert. However, any donation will be gladly accepted.
Sun said she wishes awareness will resonate to broaden national perspectives.
“We want students to open their hearts to the cause, and go beyond our domestic problems to something that occurs all over the world, even the U.S.”
BRITTANY PEARLMAN can be reached at arts@theaggie.org.
