A People United Can Never be Defeated

All my life, I have believed there would be a time of reckoning; a time when this nation's salvation or destruction would be determined by whether we have the collective will to confront our history of racism and bigotry and reconcile it with the founding principles of liberty and justice for us all. 

I always trusted that, when that time came, the great majority of US would reject racial division and embrace a nobler common destiny. 

While there have been disappointments over the years, there has been even more meaningful progress that left me confident of the future. 

What I never imagined was that any occupant of the White House would force the matter to its' crisis by putting the validation of racism to the test at the ballot box. But that is where we are and it is heart breaking. 

Still, this is no time for self-indulgent tears and despair. It is, instead, a time of opportunity.

For those who wish to live in peace and harmony with our neighbors no matter our color, ancestry, religious persuasion if any, it is time we join together and recognize the impending threat to our democracy; that we do so with a clarity of vision and purpose; to gather strength from one another, and to use our collective power to repudiate and defeat the personification of the racial animus used to divide us. 

Donald Trump wants a referendum on whether his vile, vicious, unveiled and unleashed racism is acceptable to We the People. 

It's time for everyone of us to stand and deliver the answer. 

There will be no retreat, there will be no surrender; not now, not ever. 

A People United Can Never Be Defeated.

They stand up all, their back against the wall Their flags are torn, their voices are coarse But you will come, and march alongside me And we will raise new banners floating in the wind The twilight zone will turn into the dawn Of a day of peace and justice for all Arise, unite, and don't give up the fight Face guns with stones, and arrogance with rights The harder they come, the harder they fall We stand as one, the international We know the day will come when we shall overcome And sing a song of liberty for all So when the people, united in their struggle Will raise their voice, we'll answer their call The people united will never be defeated! The people united will never be defeated! We stand up strong, though many have fallen Their names unsung, but their plights unforgotten Their blood has soaked the streets of our town We must prevail, if we lose every battle We will rise anew and keep alive the voice Of men who sang of dignity for all Arise, arise, the time has come again The fight is right to rekindle the flame To turn the tide of rising poverty We will not bow to powers in inequity We shall reclaim the ground that workers plowed And bring about equality for all So when the workers, united in their struggle Will raise their voice, we'll answer their call The people united will never be defeated! The people united will never be defeated! The people united will never be defeated! The people united will never be defeated!