Company with Message of Unity Under Fire from Extremists
New York, NY (PRWEB) October 28, 2016 -- The following is an official statement from Symphonized Audio regarding the controversial 'Symphonized Unites' Facebook video:
"Symphonized is a company which creates beautiful and unique products from a material that is both abundant and rarely used in this sphere: wood. Wood is a product that instills both awe and passion in those who have made it the focus of their craft. Music is the food of life and love. By combining the two, we believed that we could demonstrate what our company is really passionate about. This love of music and our belief in music’s power to inspire led us to create a video whose spirit and intent we still adamantly believe in. While some people truly enjoyed the video and understood that our message was one of bringing people together, many have expressed to us that the story told in the video was in opposition to cultural prohibitions. To those who politely educated us on why this video is offensive, we thank you. It was never our intent to offend anyone, but only to show the power of music in uniting people.
Unfortunately, some chose to take it a step further than simply educating us on why this may or may not be appropriate. Employees at Symphonized have received death threats, and this is unacceptable. There have been measures taken to ensure the continued safety of these employees, even to the extent of having armed guards escorting them. While there is understanding for the negative feelings the video may have sparked, it is beyond the realm of reason to instill such fear in individuals to the point that they do not feel safe in their place of employment. Comments from angered individuals claiming “people have been beheaded for less” are beyond inappropriate. Symphonized has, since these threats started coming in, even lost a few employees due to their fear of continuing to work with the company. These extreme reactions are immediately affecting innocent people who have meant no harm to anyone. One of the most powerful precepts is that of free speech. The First Amendment was intended not to protect speech that is noncontroversial, but speech that may provoke thought, agitate, or inflame passions, or else there would be no need to protect it. The creators of the video had no malicious intentions with the video, and on the contrary wanted the video to show that when two different ideologies come together in peace, there is love. We stand by our video creator’s intentions and we ask solely, that those who have concerns or even angry feelings regarding the video channel these feelings into appropriate communications and dialogue.
Symphonized requests that further communication about the video be directed using appropriate channels and dialogue. They do not wish for these communications to continue to affect the safety of their employees, who wish no one any harm, and only wish to continue their work with peace of mind."
Media Contact:
Avery Adams
718-787-1500
View "Symphonized Unites" here: https://www.facebook.com/SymphonizedAudio/videos/841405462627381/
Avery Adams, Symphonized, http://www.symphonized.com, +1 (718) 787-1500, [email protected]
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