A charity concert in Seoul has raised almost 2 million won to help support Korean unwed mothers and their children.

Around 250 people attended the CLASH concert in Hongdae’s Freebird club on March 10 to enjoy rock and hip-hop artists from the expat and Korean music scene. More than 20 performers came together for the charity night under the banner of “Two Worlds Collide for the Greater Good.”

The money raised will go toward Korean Unwed Mothers and Family Association’s work to help single and unmarried women bringing up their children here, often in the face of discrimination.

The organization run by and for unwed mothers has a variety of support services including a shelter in Hongdae where moms and their kids can stay temporarily free of charge. The group was recently registered as an non-government organization after two years of fighting for the rights of unwed mothers and their children.

“To us, the passionate support we felt at Saturday night’s CLASH event was an expression of hope and love,” a KUMFA spokeswoman said.

“Always remembering the passion and encouragement people sent us that night, we will continue to raise our voices with strength and combat the social prejudice and discrimination against unwed mothers in Korea.

“We will do this in order to make Korea into a society where our children can receive due recognition for their merits and abilities and we will continue to raise our children to become valuable members of society.”

The event was sponsored by Beaute de Noir Association, Itaewon Open Mic, Iconz Media, Red Studio and online clothing store Dovely.

Event co-organizer Hannah Kamau said: “CLASH was successful beyond our expectations. All of the performers brought their best and we all had a great time. The money we raised surpassed our goal of 1.5 million won. We are looking forward to an even bigger, better CLASH event within the next few months.”

By Kirsty Taylor (kirstyt@heraldcorp.com)