Welcome to new subscribers and regular readers! Thank you for joining me for today’s song from 1999, “Give Light” by Greg Artner and Terry Leonino. If you’d like to hear the song before you read about it, I’ve included a YouTube video below the article. For Japanese students, vocabulary words in bold are provided in Japanese below. TOEIC (PBT) 450+, Eiken 2, CEFR B1.
(217 words)
Ella Baker was an amazing civil rights leader who helped fight for everyone to be treated the same. In the 1960s, there were strong leaders of the Civil Rights movement such as Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., James Farmer, and Roy Wilkins. They joined together to make important groups to fight for change. Ella believed in giving power to the people, especially young people. She helped start many important movements. One of these was the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Ella helped create SNCC with young Black leaders including Diane Nash, Marion Barry, John Lewis, and James Bevel. Ella believed that students needed an organization of their own. She encouraged them to lead the way.
Ella Baker was a strong voice for change and inspired many others to join the fight for justice.
People cannot be free until they realize that peace—we can talk about peace—that peace is not the absence of war or struggle, it is the presence of justice. — Ella Baker
This song is base on quotes from Ella Baker.
Give light and people will find the way
Give light and people will find the way
Give light and people will find the way
People will find a way I do believe
Seek peace…
Stand together…
Give hope…
Give love…
Give peace..
Question
How can we “give hope” to others?
What do you think “people will find a way” means?
Vocabulary
reverend 牧師
justice 正義
absence 不在
presence 存在
struggle 闘争
seek 探求
Sources
Ella Baker Freedom Day Rally Speech Text. Voices of Democracy. (2021, March 15). https://voicesofdemocracy.umd.edu/ella-baker-freedom-day-rally-speech-text/#:~:text=We%20aren’t%20free%20until,with%20a%20lot%20of%20problems. Accessed 5 January 2025.
Stewart, J. C. (2001). 1001 things everyone should know about African American history. Broadway Books.
Who was Ella Baker?. Ella Baker Center for Human Rights. (2021, December 6). https://ellabakercenter.org/who-was-ella-baker/ Accessed 5 January 2025.
Read about another song about Ella Baker:
I believe that education should be free.
All of the articles about the songs will remain free for students to use. (We are all students, are we not?) However, if you find these articles useful and are in a position to make a small (or large) donation, I would be deeply grateful.
buymeacoffee.com/socialissuesinsong
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英検2級以上 | 名曲で英語を学ぶ
Once again Louise you have posted an essay on a subject and person being studied in my, once a week, History class. I will send this over to my colleague who I know will not have found the song. Thank you for always being a step ahead! x