‘I Will Do What I Can Do’: Peter Gabriel and the Documentation of Human Rights

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Abstract This article explores the cyclical relationship between Peter Gabriel, his music, the documentation of human rights, and human rights organization. It emphasizes the importance of the documentation of human rights issues as an influence in Peter Gabriel’s life, and how, in turn, he has reflected his concern for human rights issues within his own creative and more direct activist work. In at least one instance a song of his—‘Biko’—has ended up being a form of documentary in its own right, while in another his activism, in setting up the human rights organization WITNESS, has mirrored the sort of documentation of human rights issues which had a profound influence on him in the first place. It is argued that as activist-performer, Gabriel has adopted a grounded and progressive approach to documenting human rights issues and promoting human rights activism.