Music for urbanists: Lift Every Voice and Sing

James Weldon Johnson (from www.jamesweldonjohnson.org)

Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,
Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us...

--JAMES WELDON JOHNSON

The African American Museum of Iowa stepped up in a big way this Martin Luther King Day. For the second year in a row, observance in Cedar Rapids was at risk of being overshadowed by events: last year by the Iowa precinct caucuses, and this year by the presidential inauguration. The A.A.M.I. provided reduced admission and child-friendly programming all day long, including displays and video documentaries.

For many years, most recently in 2023, Cedar Rapids commemorated Martin Luther King Day with an evening service at St. Paul's United Methodist Church. The highlight for me was always when everyone in attendance stood to sing "Lift Every Voice and Sing," one of my all-time favorite hymns that deserves wider usage. Like "Joy to the World," it's tied by tradition to a particular season, but its message is timeless.

Anne Harris Carter presents Mike and Toni Loyal with the 2025
Who is My Neighbor Award, as Pastor Jonathan Heifner looks on
(Sunday 1/19 at St. Paul's United Methodist Church)

"Lift Every Voice and Sing" began as a poem composed by James Weldon Johnson on the occasion of Lincoln's birthday in 1900 (PBS 2013). It was Johnson's brother, John Rosamond Johnson, who later set the poem to music with its distinctive dual melodies. 

James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938) was 29 when he wrote the poem that became such an enduring song. His was no "cockeyed optimist" (South Pacific reference) about racial conditions in America as he wrote his song, either; he spent much of the following two decades lobbying the federal government fort a national anti-lynching law, which was finally passed in 1919.

Johnson must have been a whirl of talent and energy, for at various times in his life he was an elementary school teacher, founder of a high school, a lawyer, a prolific composer (collaborating with his brother) for Broadway shows, author, college professor, diplomat to Venezuela and Nicaragua, and civil rights activist for the NAACP ("Civil Rights Leaders: James Weldon Johnson" n.d.).

Here is a 2009 choral version of "Lift Every Voice and Sing" by the Metropolitan Baptist Church choir (5:00):

And here is a hip-hop version from Austin, Texas, performed by Doughboy the Midwest Maestro and DJ Kool Rod. A casual Internet search reveals dozens of versions in a variety of genres. It is one versatile song.

Its repeated references to past tribulations seems particularly appropriate to oppressed groups i.e. not suburban white bloggers. But the lyrics, like King's often-articulated vision, are all-inclusive: "Lift every voice and sing, let earth and heaven ring" (italics mine). We all live in hope of seeing unity; we all stand in need of redemption. It is hope well-placed, too, because only unity produces the social peace and prosperity we need to live well.

We have come over a way that with tears has been watered,
We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered,
Out from the gloomy past, Till now we stand at last

Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.

Martin Luther King Jr (1929-1968) at the A.A.M.I.

Martin Luther King Jr. understood the hope of unity, combined with critical thinking and endurance and empathy. So did Jimmy Carter, whose mourning period is being interrupted for Inauguration Day. Pope Francis, who's made hope the theme of the 2025 Year of Jubilee (Powell 2025), understands it as well. I'm less sure about those who have used their political office to take out after diversity efforts in schools and workplaces. Understanding the perspectives of those whose life experiences differ from the majority's seems essential to attaining unity. But they're doing their best to make "diversity, equity, and inclusion" dirty words. Is understanding all this just "woke bullshit," to quote our newly reinaugurated President?

Suburbia was/is white because of inequality and discrimination;
Who will tell this story if government threatens schools?
(Display photographed at A.A.M.I.)

Donald J. Trump, triumphantly returned to office on MLK Day itself, has thrived exclusively on disunity. Even now, he is a sore winner, utterly ungracious about the (rather favorable) conditions he inherits from his predecessor. During the awful wildfires that still rage in California, he has promoted disinformation, blasted anyone taking actual responsibility as "incompetent," and called the California governor Gavin "New-scum," which insult Newsom probably last heard in 1st grade. I was tempted to see what "weird shit" (George W. Bush's 2017 characterization) Trump would produce in the inaugural address, but decided my time would be better spent at the African American Museum.

Resist hate with love, said King
(My picture taken at A.A.M.I.)

Building the cities of the future won't be done with name-calling; it will be done with ongoing learning and persistent hard work.

Shadowed beneath Thy hand, May we forever stand.

True to our God, True to our native land.

SEE ALSO: 

"MLK and the Winter of Discontent," Holy Mountain, 16 January 2024 

James Weldon Johnson Foundation page

Kristin Du Mez, "From the Spiritual Underground: Love and Justice for Nov. 20 and Beyond," Du Mez Connections, 19 January 2025

Kathryn Mobley, "West Dayton Exhibit Inspired by Martin Luther King Jr's Dayton Speech," WYSO, 20 January 2025

Pete Saunders, "CSY Replay #16: More on Segregation," Corner Side Yard, 20 January 2025

Cedar Rapids' big bets

 

Approximate location of proposed new middle school

The Cedar Rapids Community School Board has approved the purchase of land in unincorporated Linn County, which they intend to be the site of a new middle school. As reported by Cindy Hadish in Homegrown Iowan, construction of the school is dependent upon the outcome of a bond referendum in November 2025, and is part of contracting the district's six middle schools down to four. The district argues contraction is necessary because of declining enrollments.

The school district operates under two mandates: to educate K-12 students, and to manage that in the most cost-effective way possible. As with the elementary school shuffle, they have argued that new construction offers the opportunity to keep up with technological developments in education, and that it is less costly to build than to repair. The choice of location is at first blush bizarre, but perhaps the district would argue that they need a lot of land that is relatively inexpensive. It seems relatively inaccessible, too, walkable from hardly anywhere other than the large-lot subdivision to its west. Even biking will be difficult for most students, despite the development of a trail alongside Highway 100. So we're in for a lot of private cars and school buses, with the latter costing district taxpayers maybe more than they're saving on the remote location. (For more on the complicated economics of school closings, see Roza and Dhammani 2024.)

While the district will retain middle schools in Wellington Heights (McKinley) and the near northwest side (Roosevelt), this also continues a trend of moving schools outward. The traditional neighborhoods near the center of town will become less attractive, which is for many reasons not in the city's long-term interest. That may not be one of the school district's mandates, but whose job is it?

Mayor Tiffany O'Donnell speaks at Bridge of Lions dedication,
July 2022

Maybe it's the job of the city government, although in a fragmented system they have no pull with the school district. However, the city is busy pursuing its own risky would-be game-changers: a casino across the river from downtown, and not one but two data centers south of town (one is Google, one is "bigger than Google"). About the casino, I've argued that, arguments about morality and cost distribution notwithstanding, my biggest objection is that it's a terribly unproductive use of primo land. With a less splashy, more incremental approach, we could build a neighborhood that could be an ongoing supply of human energy to core businesses.

The political hype around bagging the data centers makes me suspicious, without a whole lot of personal knowledge of how they operate. Strong Towns lists data centers along with corporate headquarters and big-box stores as the 21st century equivalent of smokestack chasing: a self-defeating contest among localities, "betting big on bad hands" in the words of Strong Towns' John Pattison, in which both the winner and the also-rans wind up sad. (See also Mattera, Tarczynska, and LeRoy 2014.) 

• Are we being overly optimistic about the economic impact of the firms' investments? 
• How much tax revenue is the city foregoing to lure them? 
• How much infrastructure investment and maintenance will be required to prepare the ground for their arrival? 
• How much of our economy is going to be dependent on corporate decisions made far away? 
• Realistically, how many and what type of jobs are these behemoths going to sustain? 
• What about data centers' reputation for sucking up power and water, competing with local residents and existing businesses? 

We shouldn't get carried away with happy talk.

(Free clip art from getdrawings.com)

All of us, including those who currently serve as city or school officials, have a stake in a city that is prosperous, equitable, and sustainable. I'd even include those who are in a position to profit from these investments.

A baseball slugger who constantly swings for the fences may be exciting to watch, particularly when he connects and belt one 500 feet. But the long string of strikeouts between blasts isn't fatal to him or his team. They'll live to play another day. If they decide Biff strikes out too much, they can find a new bopper. But a city that swings for the fences is playing a riskier game. Better to make consistent solid contact, and leave the excitement to the private sector. As such, I'd rather the new middle school be located on the proposed casino site, or some other in-town location; if we must have a casino, it go somewhere on the edge of town; and that we forego data centers altogether unless their impacts are paid for.

SEE ALSO: The latest Strong Towns video, produced by Ben Durham, is "Will a Factory Make This Small Town Rich? (11 January 2025, 23:06):

Walking audits

 

Students exit the city bus, catty-corner from Washington High School

A walking audit is a good way to assess walkability in a specific area. Walking enables anyone to see how easy or difficult it is to walk there, not only for yourself, but also for others who may not be as experienced or able-bodied. Daniel Herriges of Strong Towns argues: You see how your neighbors go about their needs, how they interact with each other, and where they face difficulties in negotiating the environment. And you can take it all in and reflect on it in a way that you can't possibly do from behind a windshield (Herriges 2019).

Edward Erfurt's recent Strong Towns article examines a recent project in his hometown of Charles Town, West Virginia (not to be confused with Charleston, West Virginia, which is not quite 300 miles away). Two new blocks of sidewalk connect downtown Charles Town with civic buildings like the police station. However, [a] the street was also widened, which encourages drivers to go faster; and [b] a key intersection is missing crosswalks. As a result the objective of safe walking remains elusive. Erfurt's piece concludes with some appropriate policy remedies.

Choosing places to do a walking audit can bias the results. It's easy to choose places where walking is nearly impossible (any of our town's stroads, streets near schools that have no sidewalks), or rather pleasant (between downtown buildings). And the biggest obstacle to walking in my town--perhaps yours, too--is the lack of destinations within a popularly accepted walking distance. However, you don't need an analytical microscope to see what's clearly unacceptable or successful infrastructure. 

So let's try three walks that aren't quite as obvious:

(1) Geonetric Building to Lion Bridge Brewing Co. (0.5 mi). Geonetric is a health care marketing firm that relocated to New Bohemia in 2014, a key moment in that neighborhood's post-flood reconstruction. Its building also houses several other companies, the nonprofit NewBoCo, and the Vault Coworking space where I have written many of these posts. Lion Bridge started that same year, locating just across the Cedar River in Czech Village.

Lion Bridge is on 16th Avenue, which runs behind Geonetric's parking lot. It's not a particularly busy street, but it's a sort of bypass around New Bohemia's commercial district, and cars can move pretty quickly. It's best to get across as surreptitiously as you can.

Once across 16th, it's duck soup getting to Lion Bridge. You do have to walk past Tornado's, which people close to me rate as the best burger in town.

Tornado's Grub & Pub, 1600 3rd St SE

There's not much cross-traffic on this side of 16th Avenue, although that may change as the area develops. Another block, and you're at the river.

The Bridge of Lions over the Cedar River

The slope of the bridge seems gentle enough for a wheelchair to manage, although I'd like to see one in action before I proclaim it so. The sidewalks are at an unusual height off the street, so don't fall! There are painted bike lanes on the street, though some cyclists prefer the sidewalk.

Riv vu

Cross the bridge, and now we're on the southwest side. A pillar marks the entrance to historic and charming Czech Village.

Entering Czech Village

Made it!

Lion Bridge Brewing, 59 16th Avenue SW

An uncomplicated walk, as long as there's not too much competition for space on the bridge. Today--another cold one--there was none.

(2) My house to Washington High School (1.1 mi). Our six years as Washington parents ended in 2015, but we and it remain in the same places. There are sidewalks the whole way, mostly new or recently-repaired.

Some ice issues where the sidewalks cross alleys

To get to the high school, you have to cross Forest Drive sooner or later, and it's best to do it sooner, because the sidewalk on the west side of the street ends before Linden Drive. Moreover, the intersection of Linden and Forest can get interesting, because eastbound and southbound traffic can't see each other.  (One collision was narrowly averted this morning, in fact.) So it's best to be safely on the east side before you get to Linden. 

Intersection of Forest and Linden is complicated for walkers
(Google Earth screenshot)

The intersection of Forest and Cottage Grove, where the high school is located, is uninteresting except at the times when school starts and when school lets out.

Cars on Forest backed up at Cottage Grove

Could a roundabout ease this brief daily traffic jam? It's come up a couple of times, getting beaten back by vigorous neighborhood opposition. And how would a roundabout affect pedestrians' ability to cross one or both streets at school time?

Interestingly, I saw no one walking to school this morning... no one walking at all, in fact, except for one fellow and his dog. It was chilly, but...

(3) Somebody's house on 8th Street NW to Cultivate Hope Corner Store (0.6 mi). The Cultivate Hope Corner Store is a neighborhood grocery started by the Matthew 25 organization in 2022. The building housed a small grocery store a long time ago, and according to the 1953 Polk's City Directory was at that time the home of Shaheen Sundries; Cultivate Hope Corner Store is the third business in the building since the flood.

Most of the Near Northwest area west of Ellis Boulevard has been restored or rebuilt since the 2008 flood. I'm listening to Donald Shoup describe the wrecked state of Los Angeles sidewalks to John Simmerman, but here there are smooth new sidewalks all the way to the store...

Quiet street: 1300 block of 8th Street NW

...including the latest crosswalk treatments...

Ellis Road NW intersection

...unless someone does this. Why?

snow obstruction on 8th Street NW

It was easy for me to step over this, but it would trouble anyone in a wheelchair or with a stroller. And if someone trips over it, who do they sue?

Properties east of Ellis was predominantly bought up and demolished after the flood; only now that flood walls are funded has redevelopment begun, including these row houses.

row houses near Neighborhood Corner Store on 8th St NW

The intersections on Ellis at F and E Avenues have new roundabouts.

Ellis Road approaching roundabout at F Avenue NW

This could be a challenge for pedestrians if traffic is heavy, or there's a lot of in-and-out at the Casey's, but on my mid-afternoon walk they were easy to navigate.

Former site of Shaheen Sundries:
Neighborhood Corner Store, 604 Ellis Road NW

Made it! Again, no one else was out walking that I could observe.

I tried during these audits to put myself in the (literal) shoes of pedestrians with characteristics other than mine. It would have been easier to do that had there been actual pedestrians to observe, but perhaps it was too cold. Really, though, chilly weather is no obstacle in a truly walkable city. The infrastructure is there, for the most part; now all we need are the walkable destinations.

See Also:

"10th Anniversary Posts: What is a Complete Street?" 2 August 2024

Lyz Lenz, "I Have a Right to Be Here: A Year of Running in 2024," Men Yell at Me, 8 January 2025 [comfortable running, and walking, is affected by more than just infrastructure]

Strong Towns Sources on Walking Audits

Edward Erfurt, "How a Walking Audit Can Help You Quickly Improve Street Design," Strong Towns, 19 December 2024

Daniel Herriges, "Seeing Your Community With New Eyes Through a "Walking Audit"," Strong Towns, 2 May 2019

Sarah Kobos, "Is Your City Pedestrian-Unfriendly?" Strong Towns, 10 March 2016