What is this unity that I keep hearing about?

Unity and healing are the buzzwords of the moment. Like many Americans, I was inspired watching the inauguration ceremony. The words of the brilliant young poet Amanda Gorman filled my heart with so much hope. The diversity at the event was a much-improved sight. Purple, my favorite color, was worn by many of our leaders with the intent to visually represent a desire to communicate a message of unity. But what is this unity that I keep hearing about? What does it entail?

After George Floyd and what seems never-ending events of police brutality and tumultuous protests, many have been awakened to the deep neglect and injustice suffered by our underrepresented and marginalized communities. Many have been compelled to learn and study the racial tensions that exist in our society. We are now learning about violent historical events that are often omitted from our history books. Music educators in particular are also realizing how pervasive is the use of songs with a dark historical background rooted in racism. We are also recognizing the lack of representation that prevails in our field, repertoire choices, and teaching resources.

As a result many colleagues, bonded together by a goal of creating a more just musical experience for everyone, have been advocating for our profession to be more mindful of the music we present to our students; to transform our curriculum into one that is free of racist songs and is more inclusive and representative of the diversity that exists in our country—from the original inhabitants to the newly arrived.

Many conferences are focusing on discussing the issue of equity in our field. But, are they really promoting equity? Are they welcoming as much diversity as they can or are they having the same presenters tackle this issue? How are they helping those that are often prevented to participate because of financial constraints? How are they compensating those presenting? Are the traditional practices at conferences really acting on what they are promoting? Are we really an inclusive profession?

One way to equity and meaningful chance is to recognize our responsibility to bring solutions to this issue and to make it more accessible for BBIA colleagues to contribute their voice and experiences to the ongoing conversation. Our profession, with the contribution of each individual, needs to find better ways to address these issues that are a reflection of the needs of the communities we serve.

Our profession needs to take a very close look at the voices they are amplifying, and most importantly, needs to earn the trust of our BBIA colleagues and students so they can feel safe in these spaces with their learning community.

We need to lead the way to a more just and empathetic environment where all of our BBIA members can feel seen, valued, and heard.

In conclusion, for healing to occur, we need to dismantle the system of oppression that keeps preventing our profession from moving forward. Starting by eliminating any hurdle that prevents our BBIA colleagues and students to be part of this very important conversation. 

I have always believed that educators are visionaries. As a collective, we must develop a vision that leads to unity and healing. This vision needs to be grounded in ownership, responsibility, accountability, leadership, and transformation. The only way to create this vision is to include representatives of our BBIA community in the conversation.

Let the inspiring words of Amanda Gorman guide us to do this work. She reminded us that by working on rebuilding, reconciling, and recovering we will emerge a stronger profession. One that celebrates what is good about our country today and the possibilities of what we could become if only we strive to embrace our diversity with justice insight.