Statement of Unity with the Harvard Glee Club
and the George Floyd Protests
As we all know, in addition to facing the impacts of COVID-19, our society has been confronted with heartbreaking racist encounters, including, most recently, the tragic death of George Floyd—flashpoints in a history of systemic racial and social injustice. This has been deeply felt by all of us, especially the black community aggrieved in so many ways. We are indeed living in a time requiring better listening, self-reflection, and action―and a national reckoning regarding Black Lives Matter, social justice, and civil rights.
This moment in history would appear a tipping point on longstanding, significant issues in our country concerning human rights, social justice, economic inequality, racism, police brutality, and law enforcement reform. As evidenced by protests not only in the U.S. but elsewhere in the world, this appears to be a seminal and possibly transformative moment on a global scale as communities and countries not only grapple with issues of racism and social and economic justice, but how to implement change at a time when the public is demanding changes faster than public policymakers.
As alumni of Harvard, an institution that strives to educate citizen-leaders and equip them to change the world for the better, this is a time for all of us to engage in personal self-reflection, intellectual investigation, thoughtful discussion, and to consider action, advocacy, and change.
Harvard Glee Club Alumni stands united with the Harvard Glee Club, whose statement of unity is set forth below, and supports efforts to change the systemic problems of racial and social injustice.
The Harvard Glee Club has established a $1,000 matching grant, and Harvard Glee Club Alumni has established a $5,000 matching grant. We encourage our alumni to make a special one-time gift to this fund. Please click on the button below to make your donation. In the "Comments" box please add a note to earmark this donation for the "George Floyd Protests" campaign. The members of the Harvard Glee Club will direct the disbursement of these funds.
In Unity,
Harvard Glee Club Alumni
June 13, 2020
Harvard Glee Club
Statement of Unity with the George Floyd Protests
We, the Harvard Glee Club, stand united with all those who seek to end structural and individual racism in this country, especially the Black Lives Matter movement. We denounce the patterns of police torture, the killing of black people, and the recent acts of violence against protestors. We recognize our duty to actively disavow this culture; we deeply mourn the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and countless others lost to hate crimes and police brutality whose names we will never know.
Founded shortly before the Civil War, the Glee Club has struggled to uphold our cardinal virtue of unity in the face of racial division. W. E. B. Du Bois was rejected by our group on the basis of his race in the 1880s. Drue King actively faced discrimination by the Harvard Glee Club in 1941 when our group acquiesced to racist demands by concert organizers. We examined our history through a concert dedicated to the Legacy of W. E. B. Du Bois in 2019. But a one-time examination is not enough.
As a group benefitting from the privilege found at an institution like Harvard, too often has our group been complicit in the face of racial injustice. Founded in 1858, the Glee Club remains tarnished by the legacy of racism generationally pervasive in our society and music. These portions of our identity remain a constant reminder that everyone must actively seek to be anti-racist every day.
We have been and will continue to encourage our members, alumni, and listeners to donate to causes that advance the Black Lives Matter movement. We also pledge to match up to $1000 donated by our current or recent members to related causes, with our contribution going toward the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund.
We urge everyone to use this link of resources compiled by the Harvard Black Students Association to educate themselves on ways to support meaningful change in our communities and our country.
In Unity,
Harvard Glee Club
June 3, 2020