Song Removed From Spring Cove MS Choir Concert

“Lift Every Voice and Sing” is a hymn with lyrics by James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938) and set to music by his brother, J. Rosamond Johnson (1873–1954).

This song was written from the context of African Americans in the late 19th century. The hymn is a prayer of thanksgiving to God as well as a prayer for faithfulness and freedom, with imagery that evokes the biblical Exodus from slavery to the freedom of the “promised land.”

The well-known hymn is featured in many hymnals around the world and in many denominations.

This comes from a Facebook post from Spring Cove School District parent Stephen Hershberger to express his disappointment when the song was removed from the middle school spring chorus concert on Tuesday, May 7.

The song was to be performed with four other songs but was removed after a decision made by Superintendent Betsy Baker and Middle School Principal Amy Miller the morning of the concert, he said.

Hershberger said his son was a part of the choir and was disappointed when it was cut from the concert.

“It was his favorite song, and he was always singing it around the house,” he said.

After Hershberger’s discussion with Miller and Baker, he was told that they were approached by a couple of students who said they were uncomfortable with performing the song.

This was followed by calls from their parents threatening to pull their children from the concert, the administrators told him.

Hershberger said that on Tuesday morning, the choir students were pulled into the auditorium and were told they were not allowed to sing the song.

He was told by administrators that the decision to remove the song from the concert was done in the spirit of inclusion, and to avoid controversy and conflict.

“I thought it was a poor decision,” Hershberger said. “In the Cove, there is not a lot of representation for minority voices, I think the main purpose of the song is a representation of thanksgiving and coming together regardless of race.”

Baker said she heard concerns that the song had caused some divisiveness recently in the country, and for this reason some of the students expressed their concerns and were not comfortable performing the song.

“We recognized this concern and decided to remove the song from the concert to protect students,” she said.

Baker said while the song was removed, the students were able to perform the other four songs and were able to focus on showcasing their talents.

She has heard positive and negative feedback because of the decisions from both sides.

“This shows how divisive the song is – we wanted to protect the students from that,” Baker said.

Hershberger understands the administration had concerns for their students but had an issue with it being a last minute decision which left everyone in a difficult place with no good solution.

He said chorus is an elective course in which students must participate in the practices and concerts to pass, which led to Miller thinking it was not fair to not let those kids perform.

Schools make accommodations all the time for people who do not want to participate in an activity for various reasons.

“Other options were given, like letting those kids sit out during that song, but Dr. Miller didn’t want anyone to be singled out,” Hershberger said.

He said the students who were uncomfortable singing the song could have also checked out the art show happening at the same time.

The concert was originally supposed to be 30 minutes but with the removal of the song it was reduced to 20 minutes.

“My son and other students were disappointed, they worked so hard since January, and the removal of the song caused the concert to be shorter,” Hershberger said.

During the concert everyone made it look and feel like nothing happened.

“We were upset about it but we also want the kids to have a good experience and performance regardless of what the adults decide,” Hershberger said.

He said the reaction of the other parents was that they did not understand why it was made into a big deal.

Hershberger said the parents that are complaining about the song being performed have no trust in the administration and teachers.

“I hope people can recognize that sometimes learning isn’t comfortable, sometimes it’s uncomfortable and that is okay because it is required for growth,” he said. “Having the willingness to listen to the voices of others helps us learn that we are all people even though we have different experiences.”

Hershberger said as parents they should do everything to make sure their kids are protected while also giving them opportunities to learn and grow.