A year ago, Arizona passed its controversial law SB 1070, making it a crime for immigrants not to carry documentation at all times and making it illegal for any citizen to hire, shelter or transport illegal immigrants.
Almost immediately, the Grammy Award-winning a cappella group Sweet Honey in The Rock responded by joining the Sound Strike, a coalition of artists supporting an international boycott of Arizona, and expressed their outrage in a new song, “Are We A Nation?” The song features instrumentation and hip-hop artist Yonas and asks: “I care, do you care? Stand for justice everywhere/ Are we a nation, divided as we fall? We need a nation, joined heart to hand.”
What doubts may linger about the group’s position on the law are dispelled by a note on its website from member Dr. Ysaye Barnwell: “We feel this law is overtly discriminatory, and will (further) provoke, condone, and legitimize racial profiling within the State of Arizona.”
Sweet Honey didn’t turn politically active overnight. Having grown out of the Civil Rights movement, the group has advocated equality and peace since forming in 1973 with just four members in Washington, D.C.
“Because we were doing theater geared to the African American experience at that time, it seemed fitting to always include music that was socially relevant,” explains Carol Maillard, one of the founding members. “Once the final personnel of Sweet Honey was established, we continued offering music that was socially relevant, as well as entertaining.”
Over the past 38 years, 23 different women have sung in the group. “No one is duplicated or replaced,” Maillard says. “We simply allow the new energy to expand our experiences and keep moving forward. Right now, the six of us are very connected and committed to bringing Sweet Honey in the Rock into the future.”
The group has addressed a range of social injustices, from apartheid in South Africa to dictatorship in Chile. Maillard speaks encouraging words to the younger generations who seek social change.
“It’s all a process of growth and development,” she says. “What is real and worthy of one’s attentions? Is it material life? For some, yes, that material world envelopes them and that is all they can focus on. For some, it’s achieving high levels of connectedness to Spirit, and that requires thought and introspection. Looking into one’s own being and heart requires a strong heart and mind. It’s not for the weak.”
SWEET HONEY IN THE ROCK
Wednesday, April 20, 7:30pm
Rio Theatre, 1205 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz
Tickets $30/$40 Gold Circle
