We are the Hope

Dear Music Family,

By this time, fully agitated and overwhelmed by this frustrating and relentlessly maddening election cycle, I am sure you will join me as I quote civil rights icon Fanny Lou Hamer in saying, “I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired” … of all this mess! This never-ending circus is fortunately coming to a close. And I will not attempt to prolong our agony by rehashing the insanity that our nation has produced, while trying to find credible, honest, compassionate, and visionary leadership. Now we are committed to doing our part as we vote as if our lives, those of our neighbors, and the wide tent of all who this country has welcomed over time, depend on our decision.

As this is not, by any means, the first time that our divided nation has been faced with such a critical dilemma, there is hope in our history. Our historical frame has many examples of citizens who have stepped up with courage and integrity from the time of our founding to the present day. Just a few weeks ago, I was honored to present a program about some of those courageous citizens at the Ypsilanti Public Library in Michigan. Early citizens found themselves challenged by the sheer ridiculousness of the idea that our nation, founded on the principles of freedom, sanctioned and participated in slavery. The brave workers on the Underground Railroad: Harriet Tubman, Lucretia Mott, Richard Allen, William Still, Angelina Grimke, William Lloyd Garrison and others, braved dangers and reprisals to reverse the actions of our nation’s founders and leaders. They stood tall as abolitionists, and in so doing changed the course of history.

And now in our own lives, we must stand in the gap for immigrants, for the poor, for women, for the environment, for people of color, for children, for the LGBTQ+ community, and for values that guarantee that all will have a voice and be truly represented in this nation that claims to be “the land of the free.”

This video shows one way that I have been blessed to keep hope alive. Sharing the light and the truth of the Gospel Train to audiences of all ages reminds me constantly that no matter how hard the journey, it’s worth taking every step. As Sweet Honey in the Rock sang, “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for.”

https://youtu.be/p3xQgzbOD1U

 In hope, ballots, and song,

Reggie