Lady Liberty Weeps

PART III

BLOG SESSION

October 18th, 2017

Good Evening Blog Readers, Followers, Visitors & Friends ~ The gang's all here, and we're going to dive into our next Blog Session!

If you would, please get your Journal out to take notes, because this Session is going to have an awful lot of information that you will no doubt refer back to. . .

Journal Notes

If you were here for our last Session, then you are aware that we are here today to continue on with our discussion about important issues that are in need of attention.  Those important issues of note are not being played over and over again in the media like they should be, but nevertheless, the unsung issues are meaningful to us all.

The first meaningful item on our list tonight is the national anthem and the protests that have been going on about the NFL players kneeling during the national anthem at football games.  The protests all started because Colin Kaepernick took a stance against social inequality.  For those who don't know, Colin Kapernick is a former San Francisco 49ers Quarterback.  Back in August of 2016, Kaepernick sat on the bench during the national anthem for a preseason game.  The reason why he did so was because as he stated, he was "not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color."

Kaepernick was in protest of what he deems are wrongdoings against African Americans and minorities in the United States.

Kaepernick also made the cover of TIME magazine for "fueling a debate about privilege, pride and patriotism."

Colin Kaepernick

"The Perilous Fight"

TIME Magazine

The story behind the writing of the American national anthem, now known as "The Star-Spangled Banner," revolves around the British attack on Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor, known as the Battle of Baltimore.  Francis Scott Key, an American lawyer, penned the words on Sept. 14, 1814, after the 25-hour battle ceased, and he realized that it was the American flag, and not the flag of Britain, that was flying in victory.

Further Notes:  Many people have difficulty memorizing the lyrics of the first verse of this song, which is commonly performed at sports events and other public gatherings.  But did you know that there are three additional verses that we almost never hear?

Francis Scott Key

In 1814, the poet and lyricist Francis Scott Key penned the lyrics to “The Star-Spangled Banner,” originally known as “Defense of Fort M’Henry.”  During the War of 1812, Key witnessed the attacks on Baltimore and wrote the words based on his experiences this night.  These lyrics were printed in local newspapers and set to the tune of an existing song called “Anacreon in Heaven,” and then officially arranged by John Philip Sousa.  Key’s famous lyrics entered the world as a broadside ballad, or a song written on a topical subject, and printed for wide distribution.

More than a century later, in 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed an executive order designating “The Star-Spangled Banner” as the national anthem, and in 1931, the US Congress confirmed the decision.  The tune has kicked off ceremonies of national importance and athletic events ever since.

PLEASE NOTE:   The anthem itself has an unexpected connection to slavery. [Article:  The unexpected connection between slavery, NFL protests and the national anthem]

The connection between race and the national anthem has a painful yet little-known root.

These peaceful demonstrations, which were initiated  last year by former San Francisco 49ers Quarterback Colin Kaepernick, have roared back into the conversation as the NFL season ramps up and the nation continues to process the racially-fueled clashes that rocked Charlottesville, Virginia this year, among other disturbing events.

During the 2016 NFL preseason, Kaepernick said he was compelled to kneel in part because of police-involved shootings that resulted in the deaths of black men, including Philando Castile and Alton Sterling.

(Pictured) ~ A group of Cleveland Browns players kneel in a circle in protest during the national anthem prior to a preseason game against the New York Giants at First Energy Stadium on August 21, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio.

The question is, what are the words to The Star-Spangled Banner"? . . .

The Star Spangled Banner

Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
What so proudly we hail'd at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars, thro' the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watch'd, were so gallantly streaming?
And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof thro' the night that our flag was still there.
O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

O, thus be it ever when freemen shall stand,
Between their lov'd homes and the war's desolation;
Blest with…

[PDF File with complete words]

The mere mention of "slave" is not entirely remarkable; slavery was alive and well in the United States in 1814.  Francis Scott Key himself owned slaves, was an anti-abolitionist and once called his African brethren "a distinct and inferior race of people."

Some interpretations of these lyrics contend Key was, in fact, taking pleasure in the deaths of freed black slaves who had fought with the British against the United States.

(Who should kneel in protest to this song?)

The better question might be:  Who should stand to honor this song, and why?

For your Journal:

What do those words mean to you?

Is it time to come up with a new anthem for the United States?

Is it time for people to search their hearts?

Do you truly understand what the protests are about?

By taking a stand for civil rights, Kaepernick, 28, joins other athletes, like the NBA's Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony and several WNBA players in using their platform and status to raise awareness in relation to issues affecting minorities in the U.S.

OUR NEXT BLOG SESSION:

Lady Liberty Weeps

Part IV

One month after Hurricane Maria, 

Basics still scarce in Puerto Rico!

What about the drinking water?

F R I E N D S

Until Our Next Blog Session ~

Peace, Love & Light

By René Allen

©Copyright - René Allen - 2014-2017 - All Rights Reserved