Almost twenty years ago, I spent some time reflecting on world policies, race relations, and social injustices. When I think on a subject for a while, I tend to reflect and write about it. For years, my thoughts have been written and placed in a book in a drawer. Little did I know that I would return to that sacred drawer and revisit some of my writings. There are some things that are still prevalent in today’s world, and then there are those things that have been written and shall remain in the sacred drawer.
“Lift Every Voice and Sing”
“We Shall Not Be Moved”
“We Shall Overcome”
“Amazing Grace”
We sing the words we hear
And feel the flutter in our hearts
But as quickly as the words are spoken
The actions are forgotten
Over fifty years ago Dr. King said, “I have a dream”
Before that dream, Malcolm said, “By any means necessary”
Over twenty years ago the statement was
“To be young, gifted, and black”
Today the resounding question is
“Do you know how to be black in white America and survive?”
We hear the politicians with their flawless speeches
About equality, social injustices, Medicare, welfare,
Child care, the war in Iraq, the ban on China, rigged elections,
fake news, Coronavirus, taxes, education, and reforms.
What is real and seen and very tangible
Is the poverty level of the well-educated and the less educated
The homelessness of a society within a prosperous nation
Innocent people of color gunned down by the very people who take an oath to protect,
The system that protects the perpetrators.
A government that is not for ALL the people but for SOME of the people
A justice system that distributes unjust consequences,
The practice of self-indulgence instead of self-sufficiency,
The sense of entitlement as opposed to the urgency of hard work.
America, a vast dry land of deprecation and not enough appreciation
We turn on the news to hear how the world is changing
We bear the brunt of the frustrated man who can not feed his family
And his resentment turns into battery
We pretend not to see the sister who is left alone
Because an astronomical number of the brothers are behind walls with iron bars
We watch as a land of plenty turns into a land for the selected
We watch as our children grow up too fast
Some turning into druggies, abusers, haters, and fathers.
As others become businessmen, nurses, educators, attorneys, physicians, and scientists
While setting into motion the pattern for a changed America.
And here we are over fifty years later.
Isn’t this where we started with a dream?
Didn’t we all lift a voice to sing
To hear earth and heaven ring,
But did we ever truly overcome to see amazing grace?
I wrote this reflection twenty years ago and updated several of the lists today. The most revealing thought for me is the fact that the world has not changed so much. Racial tensions are at an all-time high; the economy continues to be an ongoing issue, and misplaced trust in the very systems that were implemented to protect and serve continues to plague the world in which we live. Dr. King and so many others marched for the right to be seen and heard as equal; yet, we continue to fight against dark forces and blatant discriminatory practices that impede progress. In another twenty years, when I go into the draw of writings, how much will the facts and tone of this reflection change? When does the dream become a reality?
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