Lift Every Voice and Sing

[sheshe2]

The journey towards the dream.

http://immasmartypants.blogspot.com/2013/08/lift-every-voice-and-sing.html

A New America

Rev. Sharpton BROUGHT IT this morning in his speech commemorating the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington.

An excerpt~

I come to tell ya, I know why they're screeching and hollerin and talkin crazy...cause old America has passed away. Old America that only worked for white males has passed away. Old America that only worked for English-speaking has passed away. Old American that'd tell you who to sleep with, but don't put food in the kitchen has passed away. Old things have passed away. We see a new America. We see an America of equality...of justice...of fairness. We march because we're gonna bring a new America - one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice - not just for some, not for who you chose, not for who you like - but for all. We believe in a new America.

[url=http://postimage.org/][img][/img][/url]

http://immasmartypants.blogspot.com/2013/08/a-new-america.html

They fought for their dignity back then. The fight continues now, to achieve dignity for all. It doesn't matter if you are male, female, black, white, latino, gay, straight, transgender, young or old. Our rights matter, our dignity matters.

BOG

*****************THIS IS A BOG POST*********************

[hrmjustin]

1. We sing that hymn in my church every so often. It is in the Hymnal of the Episcopal Church.

[sheshe2]

2. Hi Justin.

I am an Episcopalian. A practicing one through college. Not so much anymore. I pray, but in my own way now.

Thank you for the info. I didn't know that.

"Lift Every Voice and Sing" — sometimes referred to as "The Negro National Hymn" or "The African-American National Anthem"— is a song written as a poem by James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938) in 1899 and set to music by his brother John Rosamond Johnson (1873–1954) in 1900.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lift_Every_Voice_and_Sing

[hrmjustin]

3. I knew I liked you!

[sheshe2]

4. Back at you~

[jaysunb]

5. Moist eyes here....

Thank you for the post.

[sheshe2]

6. I know, jaysunb.

[Cha]

7. Beautiful, she! I adored the evocative pictures that

went with Lift Every Voice and Sing!

That Sign that the kid is holding says IT ALL!



mahalo she~

[sheshe2]

19. We won't turn back!

Honor Dignity and Equal Rights for all!

Cha!

[Kath1]

8. I agree that Al Sharpton was excellent!

Terry O'Neill of NOW was really great, also! "Fifty years ago, women were not up here speaking, but here we are today." All of the speakers I saw were impressive. So glad to see this kind of activism. I hope it continues!

[sheshe2]

9. Hi Kath~ worked today, so trying to catch up.

I have only had a chance to listen to a couple of video clips. Will find the Terri O'Neill vid too. Thanks for the heads up!

[freshwest]

11. I'd like to see that one. Here are two women that spoke today:

She's Medgar Evers' widow. His murder had a big impact on me. The first of so many.

Madame Speaker Pelosi! I can hardly wait to hear that again. I didn't know she was there in 1963.

Please post the youtube video or direct me to it, Kath1 so we can add it.

[freshwest]

29. Nancy Pelosi Recalls Attending March On Washington In 1963, Speaks Out On Voting Rights

By Mollie Reilly - 08/24/2013



"...Personally, it is my very personal pleasure to be here with each and every one of you because I was here 50 years ago," Pelosi said. "So who among you is going to be the Speaker of the House, the president of the United States, or whatever?"

Pelosi continued, "Fifty years ago, there were only five African American members of the House of Representatives. There was no Congressional Black Caucus. Today, there are 43 members. We want more."

Pelosi said Martin Luther King Jr., who gave his "I Have a Dream Speech" at the 1963 march, would want individuals to celebrate his legacy by advocating for wage equality, workers' rights and better policies for working mothers...

"Dr. King's words must continue to inspire us to compose, as Dr. King said on that August afternoon, a beautiful symphony of brotherhood," Pelosi said. "Are you ready to beat the drum for that beautiful symphony of brotherhood? Are you ready to realize the dream?"

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/24/nancy-pelosi-march-on-washington_n_3810010.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

[Kath1]

30. Thanks, freshwest!

Great speakers and the are right on - 100%!

[treestar]

31. I didn't know Nancy was there

that is interesting. She would have been 23 years old.

[freshwest]

10. Love all the messages today! VIDEO:

The ones you are noticing are more terrified than anything else. They are lashing out because they are comfortable; and to acknowledge what is happening is a threat to that comfort. Ignore them, for they are not the voices that will rise in the coming days, months and years. They are not the voices of our collected humanity. They are the old voices of fear and impotence.

~ Anonymous

[sheshe2]

14. As always I am playing catch up after work.

I have only had a chance to view Holder's video. Will listen to the rest soon.

"Lift Every Voice and Sing" was publicly performed first as a poem as part of a celebration of Lincoln's Birthday on February 12, 1900, by 500 school children at the segregated Stanton School. Its principal, James Weldon Johnson, wrote the words to introduce its honored guest Booker T. Washington. The poem was later set to music by Johnson's brother John in 1905.

In 1939, Augusta Savage received a commission from the World's Fair and created a 16-foot plaster sculpture called Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing which was destroyed by bulldozers at the close of the fair.

In Maya Angelou's 1969 autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, the song is sung by the audience and students at Maya's eighth grade graduation, after a white school official dashes the educational aspirations of her class.


In 1990, singer Melba Moore released a modern rendition of the song, which she recorded along with others including R&B artists Anita Baker, Stephanie Mills, Dionne Warwick, Bobby Brown, Stevie Wonder, Jeffrey Osborne, and Howard Hewett; and gospel artists BeBe & CeCe Winans, Take 6, and The Clark Sisters, after which, "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" was entered into the Congressional Record by Del. Walter Fauntroy (D-DC),.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lift_Every_Voice_and_Sing


Well done Reverand Al

They are not the voices of our collected humanity. They are the old voices of fear and impotence.

Thanks fresh~

[Cha]

12. Pic of Flag and Peeps holding it up at March today, she~

[font color=blue]"Martin Luther King Jr. – “The Arc of the Moral Universe Is Long, but It Bends Toward Justice”[/font]

http://theobamadiary.com/2013/08/24/a-historic-day-in-images/

[font color=blue]BOG[/font]

[freshwest]

13. Love it!

[Cha]

17. Yeah, me too..

When I was watching the Vid in the OP.. I kept waiting towards the end for President Obama to appear, and so happy when he did.

We are all so fortunate to have him for President; to be there to help us with our struggles and fight for equality for all!

[sheshe2]

16. Lift Every Voice and Sing~

"Martin Luther King Jr. – “The Arc of the Moral Universe Is Long, but It Bends Toward Justice”


edited to add
Beautiful Cha, just beautiful!







Thank you~!

[Cha]

18. You're Welcome, she! Check out this tweet to Joy Reid to Rev Al..

Bobfr @Our4thEstate

Dear @TheRevAl @TheReidReport Do spend time @TheObamaDiary & you will find exceptional coverage of #MOW50 Way better than US #KOCHMEDIA

3:55 PM - 24 Aug 2013

http://theobamadiary.com/2013/08/24/a-historic-day-in-images/

So true~

[sheshe2]

20. Kicked and Recommending!

Joy Reid and The Obama Diary!

So awesome Cha!

[freshwest]

15. 'My father called a nation to repentance' says MLK III:

[sheshe2]

23. OMG!

50 years we have been fighting for this!

I just listened...excellent!

We will fight until it is done. Equality for all!

fresh~

[IrishAyes]

21. All the posts so beautiful and encouraging

I need the uplift where I live! Thanks. It was indeed a great day.

[sheshe2]

25. I am sorry you live in the red Irish~

Together we can do anything.

my sig~

You know something, our colors are getting brighter and bolder every single day! It is the color of change and it's beautiful~~~ The Color of Things "A man's character always takes its hue, more or less, from the form and color of things about him." - Frederick Douglass

It's the color of change and it is so very beautiful!

[IrishAyes]

26. In the grand scheme of things

Maybe living here is best for my growth and development. It's certainly challenged my strength and focused my efforts. If I'd been warned what I was in for, I probably would've chickened out. Now that I'm here, there's only one way for them to get rid of me or shut me up, and so far nobody's dared.

[sheshe2]

27. We are with you 100% of the way.

As I said. Together.

PS~ I think your brain neurons are doing just fine.

she

[madamesilverspurs]

22. What a gorgeous sharing! Thank you!

Half way through that hymn I started crying, so I had to watch it again. Cried from the beginning on the second viewing.

And what it says of us, that we do lift every voice, not just the ones that emanate from those who look like us... We invite, we embrace, we elevate those who seek a better world for everyone. When we squabble, we recognize that conversation requires more than one voice -- so does harmony. Lift every voice, indeed.

[sheshe2]

24. Every voice MSS, you are correct!

Very well said.

I thank you!

[Warpy]

28. I prefer this one, thanks.

[DevonRex]

32. Why would you want to big foot the 50th anniversary of the Dream Speech

this way? Why would you want to divert attention from the civil rights struggle and the celebration of such an important moment in history?

Nobody here dislikes the song you posted. It simply doesn't fit the subject of this thread. If you prefer your song, why don't you post it as an OP with commentary that lends it the proper dignity it deserves rather than the snippy thing you posted here?

[Warpy]

33. Oh, fer krissakes.

You dig through a four day old thread for something to complain about.

We are done.