Note from Mr. Jeffrey Ellis-Lee

About Voices of a People’s HistoryVoices of a People’s History of the United States (Voices) is a nonprofit arts, education, and

social justice organization co-founded in 2007 by historian Howard Zinn (1922–2010), the author of the world-changing books A People’s History of the United States and its companion text

Voices of a People’s History of the United States, the latter of which forms the basis of our work.

Building on Zinn’s scholarship, we bring to light lesser-known voices from U.S. history, including those of women, African Americans, Native Americans, immigrants, and laborers. By giving

public expression to rebels, dissenters, and visionaries from our past—and present—we work to educate and inspire.

In his song “Bicentennial Blues,” Gil Scott-Heron says that 1976 was “a year of hysterical importance...A year of historical importance.”

2021 has been such a year for me, in a multitude of ways. To be standing on this stage tonight, able to share in a live performance amongst New Yorkers, is a moment I will never forget. New York worked to get to this historic moment—the reopening of our

city—together. Just as my students and I worked through the hysterics—caused by the challenges of Zoom, stripping us of our humanity—together. “Together” is where we

found our humanity, our story, our voices.

It is so fitting that we stand here as a part of “Restart Stages” to begin to examine, speak, and share in this great, and many times ugly, American Experience. I am profoundly

proud of how each person on this stage, myself included, has grown through our shared struggles.

Thank you for letting us share this moment with you.

— Jeffrey Ellis-LeeDirector, Voices of a People’s History Student Empowerment Course

Maxine Greene High School

Tonight’s Program

Maxine Greene AP Government Class of 2021, “The Heartbeat of Our Nation”Henry Bibb, Letter to William Gatewood (March 23, 1844)

Sojourner Truth, “Ain’t I a Woman?” (1851)Frederick Douglass, “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro” (July 5, 1852)

Chief Joseph, Chief Joseph Recounts His Trip to Washington, D.C. (1879)James Weldon Johnson, “Lift Every Voice and Sing” (1917)

Smedley D. Butler, “War is a Racket” (1935)Abbey Lincoln, “Who Will Revere the Black Woman?” (September 1966)

Howard Zinn, “The Problem Is Civil Obedience” (November 1970)Vito Russo, “Why We Fight” (1988)

Susan Brownmiller, “Abortion Is a Women’s Right” (1999) Evann Orleck-Jetter, Statement on Marriage Equality (March 18, 2009)

Gustavo Madrigal-Piña, “Undocumented and Unafraid” (August 22, 2011)Kirstin Roberts, “We Stood Up to the Bullies” (October 9, 2012)

X González, “We Call B.S.” (February 17, 2018)Tamika Mallory, “We Learned Violence From You” (May 29, 2020)

Amanda Gorman, “The Hill We Climb” (January 20, 2021)

Narrated by Itzel P.

About the Pieces

After a semester of studying music as a change agent and form of protest, the AP Government Class of 2021 at Maxine Greene High School, in collaboration with the New York Philharmonic, have composed “The Heartbeat of Our Nation.” Drawing inspiration from the words of their chosen pieces, this collaborative musical composition tells our nation’s history of injustice, strife, resilience, and, ultimately, hope.

Maxine Greene AP Government Class of 2021, “The Heartbeat of Our Nation”Performed by Cellista

Freed slaves and fugitive slaves played a vital role in building the Underground Railroad and organizing for abolition. As slaves began to tell their stories, some wrote private, or in some cases public, letters to their former owners, defying their attempt to return them to slavery. Here is a letter from Henry Bibb, who was born a slave to a Kentucky state senator and fought until he eventually won his freedom in 1841.

Henry Bibb, Letter to William Gatewood (March 23, 1844)Performed by Jaleel A.

Sojourner Truth was a renowned Black abolitionist and women’s rights activist born into slavery in 1797. When she was 29 years old, she escaped to freedom with her infant daughter and later became one of the first Black women to win custody of one of her sons against a white male slave owner. For years, she traveled the country to advocate for equal rights. Her best-known speech “Ain’t I a Woman,” was delivered at the Women’s Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio on May 29, 1851.

Sojourner Truth, “Ain’t I a Woman?” (1851)Performed by Rachel A.

July Fourth is held up as a day to celebrate the struggle for freedom and independence. But the great abolitionist Frederick Douglass, himself a former slave, dared to challenge the celebration of the holiday in this address to the Rochester Ladies’ Anti-Slavery Society in 1852.

Frederick Douglass, “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro” (July 5, 1852)Performed by Justin Q.

The lands of the Nez Percé stretched from Oregon to Idaho, but after the Gold Rush, in the 1860s, the federal government seized millions of acres of their lands, crowding them into a small part of their former lands. Chief Joseph led the resistance to the ongoing encroachment of Nez Percé lands, but his people came under fierce attack and were defeated on October 5, 1877. He was sent to the Indian Territories in Oklahoma, where he continued to speak out against the crimes of the U.S. government, as he did in a visit to Washington in 1879.

Chief Joseph, Chief Joseph Recounts His Trip to Washington, D.C. (1879)Performed by Bruce E.

In 1917, the composer James Weldon Johnson wrote the song “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” The song became so popular as an expression of the African American struggle for freedom that it widely became known as “The Black National Anthem.”

James Weldon Johnson, “Lift Every Voice and Sing” (1917)Performed by J Hoard

Smedley Butler was a prominent U.S. Marine Corps major general who joined the army in 1898 to fight in the Spanish-American War. After that he was involved in military interventions in China, the Philippines, Nicaragua, Panama, Honduras, Mexico, and Haiti. But in 1935, Butler published a powerful condemnation of the business interests he served in those imperialist ventures, War Is a Racket.

Smedley D. Butler, “War is a Racket” (1935)Performed by Quajae L.

In this essay, one of the 20th century’s great jazz singers, Abbey Lincoln, speaks out forcefully against the abuse of Black women, and raises issues that posed a challenge to feminists and others to address the specific struggles of African American women.

Abbey Lincoln, “Who Will Revere the Black Woman?” (September 1966)Performed by Sherley T.

In March 1987, the political movement to confront the AIDS crisis found militant expression with the formation of ACT UP (the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) in New York. Here, activist Vito Russo, a founding member of ACT UP, talks about his experience resisting the pandemic.

Vito Russo, “Why We Fight” (1988)Performed by Isabelle S.

In the era before Roe v. Wade, a number of women created their own networks to provide support and medical assistance to women who wanted to end their pregnancies. Here the feminist journalist and activist Susan Brownmiller recalls her own experience of having an abortion in the era before Roe, and describes how the women’s movement successfully campaigned to overturn the federal ban on a woman’s right to choose.

Susan Brownmiller, “Abortion Is a Women’s Right” (1999)Performed by Jayleen V.

In spring 2009, the movement for equal rights for gay and lesbian families achieved important victories in Iowa, Vermont, and a number of other states. Evann Orleck-Jetter, a middle school student, gave this testimony to a Joint Senate and House Judiciary Committee public hearing before the state voted to recognize gay marriage equality.

Evann Orleck-Jetter, Statement on Marriage Equality (March 18, 2009)Performed by Angelina M.

In May 2011, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal signed HB 87, a harsh anti-immigrant law inspired by Arizona’s notorious legislation. The year prior, Georgia banned undocumented students from attending their top five public universities. This speech by Gustavo Madrigal was delivered on August 22, 2011, as part of the “Graduation of Resistance” organized by the Georgia Undocumented Youth Alliance. It was delivered on the steps of the University of Georgia where, fifty years earlier, the first Black students matriculated, defying widespread protests against integrated schools.

Gustavo Madrigal-Piña, “Undocumented and Unafraid” (August 22, 2011)Performed by Michelle F.

In November 1970, Howard Zinn flew to Baltimore to take part in a debate on civil disobedience even though he risked arrest for missing a court date in Massachusetts, where he was being charged for interfering with the draft during the Vietnam War. Here is a selection from his speech.

Howard Zinn, “The Problem Is Civil Obedience” (November 1970)Performed by Leta Renée-Alan

The nine-day strike of the Chicago Teachers Union in September 2012 ended with a decisive victory against the imposition of the corporate school reform agenda on the public education system. A month later, Kirstin Roberts, a preschool teacher and member of the union, spoke at a forum about the reasons for the strike.

Kirstin Roberts, “We Stood Up to the Bullies” (October 9, 2012)Performed by Anydelka B.

On February 17, 2018, A Rally to Support Firearm Safety Legislation took place in Fort Lauderdale. One of the most compelling speeches that day was given by 18-year-old X González. González — who at the time went by the name Emma — survived the shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, just three days earlier.

X González, “We Call B.S.” (February 17, 2018)Performed by Carlos D-M.

Tamika Danielle Mallory is an American activist and leading organizer of the 2017 Women’s March. Here, Mallory addresses the burning of buildings and looting of businesses in Minneapolis during a week of high-pitched protests in the city and others throughout the country, in which demonstrators took to the streets to speak out against the police murder of George Floyd and a history of racial violence in the United States.

Tamika Mallory, “We Learned Violence from You” (May 29, 2020)Performed by Jeffrey Ellis-Lee

The first ever National Youth Poet Laureate, Amanda Gorman achieved international acclaim after powerfully delivering “The Hill We Climb” at the 2021 inauguration ceremony. We end tonight with an excerpt from her rousing poem, written to inspire “unity, collaboration, and togetherness.”

Amanda Gorman, “The Hill We Climb” (January 20, 2021)Performed by Meralys A.

Thank You for Joining Us!

Thank you to the family and friends of the Maxine Greene AP GovernmentClass of 2021. Congratulations, seniors!

If you enjoyed tonight’s program and support understanding of the ‘people’s history,’ and how history and social change was made from the bottom-up and not the top-down, please make a gift to Voices tonight HERE. Your generosity ensures that those alive today and into the future

understand that history is made by the people.

And make sure you don’t miss future Voices performances by signing up for our monthly e-newsletter HERE.

Facebook: @VoicesofaPeoplesHistoryInstagram: @peoples_history

Twitter: @vph

New York Philharmonic Teaching ArtistsDaniel Felsenfeld

Jessica Mays

Voices of a People’s History Teaching ArtistsShade Adeyemo

Brian JonesSusan Pourfar

Leta Renée-AlanAnna Strout

Voices of a People’s History StaffShade AdeyemoAnthony Arnove

Jocelyn Bonadio-de FreitasRóisín Davis

Emily B. HartingAnna Strout

Special Thanks to Lincoln Center for thePerforming Arts Staff:

Paloma EstévezRoshni LavelleJordana Leigh

Amelia LiberatoreHalla Tryggvadottir

Special Thanks to our 2021 Guest Artists fromVoices Master Classes and Tonight’s

Performance:CellistaJ Hoard

Rosie PerezRyan Jamaal Swain