Preview Summary –
- Flashback to the past and we’ve got two music history moments in songs ‘Imagine’ and ‘Born to Run’ that led to a cultural breakout for both artists who dropped an empowering message.
- A ‘new & improved’ gameplan in civic fanfare will involve managing hometown frustrations as seen in the lead-up to Independence and rallying civic engagement as seen after the Convention.
- We can raise our mojo around impact and public good not by the old school approach of ‘racism agitation’ by some new school techniques for how we ‘make our journeys one!’
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There’re two music history moments from 50+ years ago that helped shape advocacy and activism in America. First, on September 9th, 1971, John Lennon released the album with title track ‘Imagine’. The message pointed to a better future in daily life on earth as well as the here-after. Roughly four years later, on August 25th, 1975, Bruce Springsteen released the album with title track “Born to Run”. These music projects were breakout moments for both artists in how they dropped an empowering message.
With the recent 50-year anniversary celebration at Monmouth University in NJ for Springsteen’s album, folks might wonder whether their artistry offers a potential breakout moment in today’s social environment. Lennon’s take on ‘Imagine’ in some ways reflects what our days past as well as life-skills experts today suggest; begin with the end-results in mind. Remember that during our nation’s founding, two social impact tracks were front and center (the lead-up to Independence, rollout from the Convention). Over the years, those impact tracks have influenced abolitionists, civil rights and other suffrage movements. In a sense, they were in-line with a ‘Crusade for Civics, Anthem for Action’.
Furthermore, as mentioned previously, there was Paul Revere whose life’s work led to forging a new nation through the exchange of ideas and ideals, one community at a time. When you think about SAIC’s backstory and framework, it represents a similar mindset too, built around how we see America in color, not just in black & white. Pull that all together as happened in ‘imagine and run’. A path will emerge for shake-up or breakout by joining the trailblazers of our nation’s past with the changemakers of our present day. Why would taking a page from ‘old days’ make sense today?
Well, think about a time with a wayward child at home, teenager in school or young adult in the community. Parents, administrators and authorities might try different things to get them on track. Some might go with an ‘old school’ approach while others might employ ‘new school’ techniques. In some cases, both aspects might make sense. In the long run, that person will look back and probably see a moment that helped to create a shift in their attitude. As the saying goes, “its attitude that determines your altitude.” Maybe America needs an old-school attitude shift as well.
But what about a ‘new school’ approach for America? With SAIC, it’s about how we connect the dots in a fun way like dominoes, across history, civics and culture. This also means having a new & improved version of a ‘Crusade for Civics, Anthem for Action’ that engages Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z since they represent the future of our republic. Plus, the gameplan requires having ‘boots on the ground’ not for warfare but for civic fanfare by:
- Managing hometown frustrations like seen during the lead-up to the Declaration of Independence.
- Rallying civic engagement like seen during the rollout after the Constitutional Convention.
The objective is to foster a mindset about being the ‘Civics Capital of the World’ starting in Central Jersey, by how we level-up our nation’s focus in:
1. Education
Did you know before the Constitution was in place or political parties were in a race, the first 25 colleges were already founded? Harvard was founded in 1636 and others that followed were founded in the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions. There were some in the south too since that’s how the population centers spread. Those areas were the birthplace of settlements in America after the White Lion ship landed in Virginia with 20+ Africans, and pilgrims on the Mayflower landed in Plymouth Massachusetts. It’s also where Paul Revere had lonely-road horseback rides to exchange notes and spread civic ideals.
2. Awareness
Revere’s trips were important with shaping the emerging nation. This involved building awareness around sovereignty, hope, excellence and goodwill. While that worked in the lead-up to Independence and the rollout after the Constitution, the 21st century needs a new level of awareness in response to the issues of today. There’s an opportunity we have between Constitution Day, National Civics Day and America’s 250th birthday in July 2026, to raise a new level of awareness around those ‘old school’ ideals as well as some next-gen aspects of 21st century education in academics, athletics, arts and advocacy.
3. Consciousness
Whenever America made moves in fulfilling its ideals, there was a shift in consciousness, one community at a time. Psychology experts will tell you that consciousness works in tandem with the subconscious. It’s like in sports there’s practice to develop muscle memory. You’re not always thinking specifically about how you’re gonna make the play. It just happens in the moment based on having practiced the skill over time. Well America, maybe there’re some civic skills for which we’ve lost our mojo that need practice. We need to work on having ‘civic muscle memory’ and not be fooled by ‘slick talk’.
4. Purpose
What makes change hard to come by in the civic/social space? In part, it’s because some folks have more to lose than others. Plus, as the saying goes, “it’s hard to teach an old dog new tricks.” That’s why they’re trained in the early stages. Similarly in life, younger folks have less to lose when it comes to rallying around change. They have less pride, money, ego, etc, to lose than adults. So how do you make up for that dilemma? You build change around a unifying sense of purpose. This way you’ll attract young people looking to define a sense of purpose and older folks looking to live with a higher sense of purpose.
Is there a consciousness missing in culture, based on ‘clicks and clout’? Take the internet out the picture and go old school, you’ll see that the nation’s founding was influenced by the Enlightenment Age. So, who are the civic soothsayers today like back in the early days (as opposed to the smooth sayers now)? For those like Lennon who did it through music in the 60s & 70s, you find these lyrics from ‘Imagine’: “you may say I’m a dreamer; but I’m not the only one; Hope some day you’ll join us; And the world will be as one.” We’ll raise our mojo not by ‘racism agitation’ but by a conscious effort to ‘make our journeys one!’
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Tracks: Third World – Sense of Purpose – https://youtu.be/4z4yuSvQPa8?si=94h25eU1UqlnctSV
Mary J Blige & Busta Rhymes – You will Never Find Another Me – https://youtu.be/XKwmuRT2VOI?si=zoXy0kCtKPcCYV3P
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