Bring the Noise

James Weldon Johnson wrote it and his brother, John Rosamond, did what was obvious – set it to music.  And the people made it an anthem. A reminder that our voices are for celebration, psalm, music, change, melodic fights, devotion, and revolution.

In addition to a purpose, movements always have a sound and a voice.

As a child, the sounds of Martin Luther King came to me in barbershops, on corners, around kitchen tables, through WWRL and WBLS, and occasionally on the nightly news.  The voices spoke of white backlash, riots, war, frustration, fear, radicalism, wont, cynicism, hope, and even elevated soul, poetry, funk, and the beginnings of hip-hop.  He and his crew ticked us off and also inspired.

Martin Luther King knew how to bring the noise.  Three years ago, Professor Christopher Phelps put his finger on that noise:

King’s mellifluent baritone voice and charismatic leadership in 1968 were directed beyond attitudinal racism and legal segregation, toward overturning the tables of the money-changers. He meant to bring an end to war, slums, underfunded schools, destitution, and unemployment. Down riot-torn streets, he continued his quest for audacious social transformation by means of creative tension, compassion, love, inclusion, and humility. His death reminds us of American violence. The aspirations he left unfulfilled — especially for social equality and economic justice — may yet supply the legacy for a renewed American hope.*

Who’s bringing the noise today?  If a movement happened now, what would it sound like?

Let’s think about it on Monday, January 17, in the George Sherman Union’s Metcalf Hall (775 Commonwealth Avenue) when we celebrate our iconic memory of Martin Luther King.

Peace.

* Phelps, Christopher. “The Prophet Reconsidered.” The Chronicle Review 18 January 2008: http://chronicle.com Section: The Chronicle Review Volume 54, Issue 19, Page B7.