The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is continuing a collaborative effort with Global Citizen and Sony Music Latin recording artists on campaigns to inform and educate people in the Americas about the spread of COVID-19.
“Color Esperanza 2021: Protect Yourself and Protect Others,” features 6 Latin artists who have come forward to help share messages on preventing the spread of the coronavirus through their social media channels using the lyrics of the song “Color Esperanza.”
These artists include Diego Torres — who co-wrote and performed the song, which translates in English as “Color of Hope” — along with Kany Garcia, Leslie Grace, Thalía, and Carlos Vives. Together, they will help disseminate messages of hope, wellbeing, and health, specifically aimed at young people across the Americas, to hinder COVID-19.
“Even with vaccines rolling out in our region, we must maintain public health measures to limit exposure to this virus,” said PAHO Director Carissa F. Etienne. “Social distancing, limiting gatherings and the consistent use of masks in public settings and frequent hand washing are our absolute best hope for reducing the number of COVID-19 infections right now.”
The 2021 campaign prioritizes prevention — mask-wearing, social distancing, handwashing, and staying home — and will address important mental health issues related to the virus. The Americas recently surpassed 1.6 million deaths due to COVID-19 — over a million in Latin America and the Caribbean — and more than 67.6 million confirmed cases.
Originally launched in May of 2020, the initiative also contemplates the donation of all royalties received by the record company over the “Color Esperanza” track, in perpetuity, to support PAHO’s response against the pandemic. Response activities by the organization include the procurement of personal protection equipment (PPE), COVID-19 tests, and critical care equipment for countries like Belize, Bolivia, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay, and Suriname.
As of March of this year, PAHO has delivered life-saving PPE to 36 countries, including 6.2 million gloves, 2.1 million gowns, 40 million surgical and respirator masks, 371,000 goggles, and more than 24 million COVID-19 testing kits. “Color Esperanza 2020” contributed to these efforts.
Alex Gallardo, Sony Music U.S. Latin President said, “For so long, ‘Color Esperanza’ has shined as a beacon of hope for music fans everywhere. We are honored to team up with Global Citizen to introduce a new version of this classic, that includes some of the biggest stars in Latin music to the next generation and support the fight against COVID-19 together. Music still brings hope when we need it the most.”
Hugh Evans, Co-Founder, and CEO of Global Citizen said, “Global Citizen is proud to join forces with Sony Music Latin to celebrate frontline healthcare workers around the world and support PAHO’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak. We must continue to work together as a global community to address the current crisis and invest in the solutions required to stop another pandemic before it starts.”
Funding from the campaign is also helping PAHO respond to the specific and emerging health needs of the region. This is achieved by ensuring essential frontline healthcare workers are kept safe, sustaining and scaling up key surveillance efforts to ensure timely detection of cases and better understand the changing patterns of the virus, as well as supporting local care delivery to care for and save the lives of COVID-19 patients.
