For Raffi Cavoukian, the internationally known children’s entertainer and Salt Spring Island resident, seeing recent chaos and erosion of freedom in the U.S. has been “the shock of my lifetime.”
For decades, he said last week, he has enjoyed sharing his music on tour in that country and considered the U.S. “a dear friend of Canada for a long time.”
“It’s just so sad that I wanted to write a song to help all of us remember why freedom is so precious to us,” he said.
The challenge was to write a song that would appeal to both young and old listeners, and “ABC Democracy,” released in late October, is the result.
Raffi said he’s happy with the strength of the song’s title and opening line, with the first verse being: “ABC Democracy / Young and old, standing free / Choosing well, you and me / ABC Democracy.”
The Good Lovelies trio of Caroline Brooks, Kerri Ough and Sue Passmore accompany Raffi on the song, as they did for his Penny Penguin album release last year and as special guests for recent concerts.
“I turned to them for their vocal charms on this and I think they really enlivened the recording,” he said.
Writing and recording an inspirational song is one thing. Getting it out into the world is another. But Raffi was thrilled that the song got more than 23,000 likes and 5,000 shares on Instagram in one day (Dec. 3).
“And the over 300 comments have been so positive, with parents and teachers saying they love it and their kids love it. I’m just saying to myself, ‘this is probably as important a song as any I’ve ever released.’”
Raffi and the song were also featured on a national CTV news segment on Dec. 3.
“It’s really important for families to be inspired to learn about a citizen’s duty to keep a democracy alive and strong,” he told CTV interviewer Omar Sachedina. “Democracy is not a spectator sport.”
Songs with social justice themes are not new for Raffi. He has tackled Indigenous rights as far back as 1994 (with “First Peoples”); “Turn This World Around,” inspired by Nelson Mandela in 2001; Middle East peace in 2004 (“Salaam Shalom”), an environmental anthem called “Green Dream” in 2016; and “Young People Marching” (2019), written in gratitude to Greta Thunberg.
“ABC Democracy” also has a study guide for parents and educators to help reinforce its message. It includes simple definitions for core concepts of democracy, emphasizing the importance of personal choice and voting but also creating a healthy society for everyone.
“Democracy is more than elections,” states the guide. “It’s a way of living together that respects each person’s dignity, rights, and voice. When we care for each other and make decisions together, we help create a fair and hopeful future for all, including the youngest among us.”
Raffi noted that “civics” was part of his education at school.
“I think we certainly need a revival of civics in our learning institutions so the kids really are informed and hopefully inspired about the only form of government that’s really worth having. Who would choose anything that takes our rights away? Nobody would choose that.”
“ABC Democracy” can be purchased or streamed through a variety of online platforms and raffistore.com.
In related news, Raffi recently participated in a two-day symposium called Music and the Mind: A Smart Start to Early Childhood Education, organized by the Royal Conservatory of Music on the benefits of music education for young children.
“That was a wonderful event to be part of and I was well received, and it really gave me a spring in my step to take part in that.”
He has also been thrilled to be working with Laurel Collins, the former Member of Parliament for Victoria, who is the new executive director for the Raffi Foundation for Child Honouring.
“So she now brings all her experience in Parliament and how things work, how change happens. She brings her amazing capacities, her clear communication, her heartfelt love and respect for children, and she loves the Child Honouring vision. So I feel very fortunate that the Raffi Foundation has an executive director of her calibre.”