Wednesday, August 16, 2017

How Many Remember “You’ve Got to be Carefully Taught”?

My first introduction into prejudice was the song “You’ve Got to be Carefully Taught” from the film South Pacific. Rogers and Hammerstein’s lyrics were first on Broadway in 1948 or 1949 followed by the 1958 film.

Until that time, when I was in my late teens, I had not given the matter much thought. Growing up, we were too busy surviving, dealing with finances, illnesses, 3 kids (me the oldest), daddy’s frightening drinking spells, mom trying her best, and more. I saw the film the year after I graduated from high school.

I had, until then, been pretty much shielded from the issues. I had grown up in a middle class neighborhood in Philly (even though we couldn’t afford it, being low income blue collar). I had gone to parochial schools and had not traveled much at all outside of my neighborhood and the school neighborhoods.

By 1958, I was 18 and in my first job (other than babysitting before that), and travelling the whole city using buses, subways and els. I was working with lots of different people and riding with them. My eyes were opening - widely!

Anyhow, these lyrics were so strong and so real that I wonder why we are not reviving that song as a sort of theme against the evils we are seeing still today. How can we have come through so many decades in our country and still be like this?

I think it’s also time for us to pray, steadily and strongly, for peace in our country. The world really does watch us. If we can get past our differences, maybe others will follow.

Lord Jesus, I come to you this evening with two requests. First that we remember the lyrics to that song and take them to heart and live them, not just say or sing them. Secondly that we pray, and pray hard, for this country founded on freedom for all. We trust in you.

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