Many people don’t realize that lift every voice and sing was originally written as a poem and was first performed at a celebration for President Abraham Lincon. Now, the piece is directly associated with African Americans’ continued to fight for freedom and equality. It culturally referred to as “The Negro National Anthem”. I liked how this article talks about Marian Anderson and her fight to perform freely. Her most famous struggle was a performance scheduled at the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Constitution Hall in Washington, DC.
Despite having performed all over the world, the Daughters were firm in their decision to maintain their “segregated audience policy”. Despite this setback, Anderson went on to perform a famous piece by Florence B. Price at Howard University that would forever change the way people looked at female performers, artists, and songwriters.
When I was about 13 years old I was given the chance to perform at DAR myself. I was apart of a performance ensemble that was invited to sing Holiday Carols for an event that was taking place at Constitution Hall. Being the only black person and female in the ensemble at the time I knew the historical significants and impact that moment had on history. My mom made sure I knew that not too long ago black women singing at DAR Constitution Hall was unheard of and likely to never happen, yet there I was jingle bells and all.
