Rights Groups, Nobel Commission Express Regret Over Liu's Death

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is calling for China to release Liu Xiaobo's widow from house arrest Thursday.

"I call on the Chinese government to release Liu Xia from house arrest and allow her to depart China, according to her wishes," he said in a statement hours after the Nobel Laureate's death.

"In his fight for freedom, equality, and constitutional rule in China, Liu Xiaobo embodied the human spirit that the Nobel Prize rewards. In his death, he has only reaffirmed the Nobel Committee’s selection," Tillerson added.

Liu, a Chinese a literary critic-turned-dissident and pro-democracy advocate, died Thursday at age 61 following a high-profile battle with liver cancer.

"I join Secretary Tillerson in mourning the death of Liu Xiaobo, a courageous advocate who dedicated his life to the pursuit of democracy and liberty," U.S. ambassador to China Terry Branstad said.

"China has lost a deeply principled role model who deserved our respect and adulation, not the prison sentences to which he was subjected. We again ask that China release Liu Xia from house arrest, and permit her and her family to travel as they wish," he added. "As we mourn the loss and celebrate the life of this remarkable man, we call on China to release all prisoners of conscience and to respect the fundamental freedoms of all.

The leader of the Norwegian Nobel committee said Thursday the Chinese government bore a "heavy responsibility" for his death.

"We find it deeply disturbing that Liu Xiaobo was not transferred to a facility where he could receive adequate medical treatment before he became terminally ill," said Berit Reiss-Anderssen. "The Chinese Government bears a heavy responsibility for his premature death," she said in an emailed statement.

Rights groups were quick to praise his achievements and legacy while calling on the international community to investigate deaths in captivity and work to prevent them.

“Even as Liu Xiaobo’s illness worsened, the Chinese government continued to isolate him and his family, and denied him freely choosing his medical treatment,” said Sophie Richardson, China director for Human Rights Watch. “The Chinese government’s arrogance, cruelty, and callousness are shocking – but Liu’s struggle for a rights-respecting, democratic China will live on.”

The U.N. Human Rights chief expressed "deep sorrow" over Liu's death, saying the human rights movement has lost a "principled champion".

House minority leader Nancy Pelosi also expressed her condolences for Liu and disappointment with the Chinese government's handling of his illness.

"The world grieves loss of one of the great moral voices of our time. We had hoped that the Chinese ... they mistreated him in prison, contributed to his illness, we would hope that they would allow him to leave the country to receive medical care," she said, "They did not. It is a sad day.”

Godfather of Go-Go Music Dies

by Doug Levine

The so-called “Godfather of Go-Go” Chuck Brown died Wednesday (16 May) after suffering from pneumonia at a hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.  He was 75.   Brown was a music legend among fans in the nation’s capital.

Singer and guitarist Chuck Brown, along with his band The Soul Searchers, pioneered Washington’s Go-Go movement in the 1970s.  They turned it into a citywide phenomenon by blending funk with R&B, Latin, soul and dance hall music.  The band’s driving percussion beats were synchronized with Brown’s commanding vocals, while the horn-section provided tight, jazzy solos.

Chuck Brown, who moved to Washington from his native North Carolina, once said he was influenced by the sounds and fast beats he heard on the streets, as well as jazz and gospel.  Brown defined Go-Go as “a music that continues on and on, a call and response communication with the audience.”

Brown launched his career playing guitar with Jerry Butler and the Earls of Rhythm.  He was a member of the band Los Latinos before forming his own group The Soul Searchers in 1966.  After gaining a steady local following, they released their debut album, “We The People” in 1972.  Audiences continued to grow after the release of their hit single, “Bustin’ Loose.”

“Bustin’ Loose” became the first and only Top 40 hit for Chuck Brown and the Soul Searchers, although it did reach Number One on the R&B chart.  Over the next three decades, the group recorded more than a dozen albums, culminating with their first Grammy nomination for the song “Love” from “We Got This.”  The honor took Brown by surprise.  He said, “After some 40 years in the business, running around and singing in different parts of the world, I never thought it would be like this.”

News of Brown’s death spread quickly throughout Washington, DC and beyond.  Washington Mayor Vincent Gray called Go-Go music “DC’s very own unique contribution to the world of pop music.”  He said the city would have been a different place without Chuck Brown.

“The Godfather of Go-Go” Chuck Brown died 16 May at age 75.

Photo: Go go musician Chuck Brown performing at the Duke Ellington Jazz Festival, National Mall, Washington, D.C. on 1 October 2005. Photo taken by Gyrofrog.

Chuck Brown, 'The Godfather of Go-Go,' Dies at 75

Chuck Brown, the musician known as “The Godfather of Go-Go,” has died at 75 after a bout with pneumonia.

After several minor hit records, Brown created his own sound in the 1970s — a combination of funk, soul, and Latin music he called Go-Go, because he said the music goes and goes all night. The hit, “Bustin' Loose,” with his group, The Soul Searchers, helped define Go-Go's sound.

Go-Go became a signature sound of the African-American community of Washington, D.C. The affable, gravelly-voiced Brown was a familiar presence in the city's nightclubs and on the streets of black neighborhoods.

Photo by Eduardo Rodriguez, NEA. 2005.