International Jazz Day is being marked worldwide today. To observe this day, concerts and performance-based initiatives complemented by wide-ranging social outreach and educational activities would be organized.
UNESCO proclaimed April 30 as International Jazz Day in November 2011 to celebrate the power of jazz as a force for peace, dialogue and mutual understanding. "This Day is an opportunity to foster greater appreciation – not only for music, but also for the contribution it can make to building more inclusive societies," the UN agency mentioned.
According to the United Nations, International Jazz Day raises awareness in the international community of the virtues of jazz as a force for peace, unity, dialogue and enhanced cooperation among people, as well as an educational tool.
The story of jazz is written into the quest for human dignity, democracy and civil rights. It has given strength to the struggle against discrimination and racism, UNESCO stated on its official webpage.
