Artist: Leah Jo Carnine References: Antidotes to White Supremacy Culture from Tema Okun's writing on White Supremacy Culture.
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About the Song: This song speaks to what I think when I hear folks say that white people don't have to do racial justice work because it doesn't affect them.
About the Artist: Simpson has been singing and chanting for racial justice since 1999, and is grateful in specific to Curtis Muhammad and Dr. Ruth Nicole Brown for their visionary mentorship. elizaBeth kicked off the Urbana, IL chapter of SURJ in 2013, and is happy to say that, fueled by the dedication of Abby Schrantz, in November their chapter is celebrating six months of holding weekly #endwhitesilence events in their small and mighty town. Artist: Lauren Plummer @lplum_prints
Artist: Nicole Manganelli
Website: radicalemprints.com Insta handle: @radicalemprints Link to purchase (Fundraiser for Catalyst Project) From the Artist: The work we are each being called to do in our own realms to smash white supremacy, to dismantle prisons & policing (in our hearts & in our communities), to practice daily building a new world steeped in justice, is difficult work. this is true. and it is difficult in vastly different ways, depending on our identities. i also believe that there are profound gifts in these struggles for liberation. this print is meant to be a reframe, especially for white folks doing the everyday, life-long work of anti-racist actions, humble reflections, & relearning: what if we saw this work as the gift that it is? to get to face & take resposibility for our ancestors' harms, and to take responsibility for our own, allows for full participation in a different world. nothing less makes that possible. Lyrics
John Brown, by Driftwood Soldier I picked up John Brown east of Elko In the shade of a low overpass He said 'I lost my body in old West Virginia but I can still throw in for gas' This world's full of trouble and strangeness It'll wear you down and leave you numb But I won't pretend that I wasn't surprised To meet a dead man traveling by thumb Chorus There's a wind in the north, in the east, in the west It's the sound of the breath being torn from your chest There's a wind from the south, whips the flag on its pole It's the sound of John Brown's uneasy soul He was good as his word when we filled up the tank Bought me a two dollar scratch off and coffee as well And as I worked my nickel for nothing I wondered what stories a dead man can tell I said 'John, what unfinished business Keeps you so long from the grave 'He said 'I swore I'd never rest easy while another soul lived as a slave' Chorus I said 'John, slavery's over And Jim Crow's been dead fifty years 'He said, 'You can believe what you wanna believe But the fact remains that I'm still here.' The amber waves lapped on the shores of the mountains The purple peaks hidden in snow I left John Brown by Mount Sunflower, Kansas And went where I needed to go. Chorus He called me that winter from Memphis, And again the next fall from Big Bend Then some bills went unpaid and my phone number changed And I guess that's the way that things end But John wasn't wrong, it's been true all along We built this whole country on labor we stole And we just keep stealing, so I've got a feeling I'll die like John Brown with an uneasy soul Chorus About the Song: 'John Brown' is an original song by West Philly mandolin-bass gutter-folk duo Driftwood Soldier. It was written in the summer of 2020 as part of the Cultural Creation for Collective Liberation project hosted by the national body of Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) . Reflecting on songs like 'John Brown's Body' and 'Joe Hill', we thought about the way radical voices for justice killed by the state have been celebrated as still leading from beyond the grave. We're (relatively) young, and already we're tired. Wherever the spirit of John Brown is walking we imagine he's beyond exhausted. We owe him the chance to finally rest easy. To find out more about Driftwood Soldier, and hear our recent album, Stay Ahead of the Wolf, go to: https://www.driftwoodsoldier.com/ or follow on instagram at @driftwoodsoldier. This song is based on the words of Anne Braden.
Lyrics: Do you even know you have a choice / You do have a choice / You don’t have to be a part of the world of the lynchers / You can join the Other America.
Visual art by nicholas b jacobsen Available for free download for wheatpaste and postcard (files below) instagram: @nicholasbjacobsen website: nicholasbjacobsen.com
About the Artist: ALLISON BEYER is a singer songwriter, deeply proud and passionate about being a Michigander and okay with living in Indiana now. She is grateful and humbled to share this space with such talented and dedicated people. Her music is based in the Christian spiritual tradition.
Recorded socially distanced in a gymnasium with masks all around and one mic...such a great time but a little rough on the audio. Inspired by the SURJ prompts to bring in some instruments and sounds that my fore-mamas and papas might have played and the prompt, "What would it mean to be white in a world free from white supremacy?" Free For More I could let go of the guilt, stop being defensive Share a meal with my uncles, without apprehension Sit down with neighbors to watch the sunset without all the tension of unasked questions about who's on which side The Whole Justice Department would be let go on furlough History teachers would be our national heroes Streets would be named for the people who made them And the land that sustains us we'd reverence as sacred We'd all be on the same side, same fight We'd all be walking the same line, same time We'd all be giving our all Freed from fear Freed for each other Freed for more I could stop keeping tabs on my husband as he goes around town Because there'd be no more risk of driving while brown I'd take heart, know my children'd be judged by their character There'd be parades, no more raids Playgrounds 'stead of cages We could hold hands in a church or pass notes in a school room Let go of the terror of any chance of a shooting There'd be no more cop killings, there'd be no more looting We'd have what we need We'd invest in our healing We'd all be on the same side, same fight We'd all be walking the same line, same time We'd all be giving our all Freed from fear Freed for each other Freed for more Credits Songs for SURJ Cameron Cortens, CSC: Accordion Julian Druffner, CSC: Mandolin Devon Sproule co-write (chorus!) |
ABOUT USWe are white cultural workers who believe our own freedom is intertwined with the struggle against white supremacy. Archives
February 2021
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