A Voice on the Steps of Freedom

In 1939, the great contralto Marian Anderson was denied permission to perform at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. The Daughters of the American Revolution refused her the stage for one reason alone — the color of her skin. It was a public humiliation designed to silence her.

But Anderson did not retreat. With the support of Eleanor Roosevelt and the Department of the Interior, she stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday and sang before seventy-five thousand people gathered on the National Mall. Millions more listened on the radio. She opened with My Country, 'Tis of Thee, her voice rising clear and unhurried into the open air, as if the very sky had become her concert hall.

What strikes me is what Anderson did not do. She did not rage. She did not retaliate. She simply sang. She answered rejection with excellence and hatred with beauty. That takes a kind of courage most of us never consider — the courage to keep offering your gift to a world that has told you it is unwelcome.

Scripture says, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9). The Almighty does not promise us friendly audiences. He promises us His presence.

Some of you are standing on your own cold steps this morning, wondering if your voice still matters. It does. Sing anyway. The God who gave you that voice did not give it to be silenced.