Dusty In South Africa
Dusty Springfield’s 1964 Tour of South Africa
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIarfaQY_LM
In 1964 Dusty caused a political furore in South Africa. Dusty hit the headlines when she was deported from South Africa. Dusty had many black friends and felt it would be betraying their friendship if she bowed down to the South African government. So she had an anti-apartheid clause written into her contract and refused to perform concerts before segregated audiences, as required by the South Africa’s racist apartheid system at that time.
Under South African segregation laws Dusty was arrested, confined to her hotel, and then deported for performing in front of a racially mixed audience and was forced to abandon the tour and return home to criticism from some other artists.
Dusty and her band were escorted to the airport by armed guards. As Dusty and the band walked across the tarmac to their flight they were greeted by a row of black airport porters. Lined up with their berets off their heads and held in their hands as a sign of respect they formed a solemn guard of honour as Dusty climbed the steps to the plane.
Dusty was firmly backed by the British government at the time and by many of her contemporaries for making a stand on apartheid.
On returning to Britain Dusty was interviewed and said, “It was not my intention to spark an international incident, but rather to simply play my music to everybody, equally.”
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