Tonight I rediscovered on old favorite, almost like an old friend. The song Ella’s Song by the group Sweet Honey In The Rock was a rock I leaned on for support, climbed up on for perspective and carried inside as a source of strength for several years in the late 80s. It is one of the most beautiful and inspiring songs I know and finding it again online, after so many years without hearing it, made me very happy.
Ella’s Song
We who believe in freedom cannot rest
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
Until the killing of black men, black mothers’ sons
Is as important as the killing of white men, white mothers’ sons
We who believe in freedom cannot rest
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
That which touches me most is that I had a chance to work with people
Passing on to others that which was passed on to me
We who believe in freedom cannot rest
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
To me young people come first, they have the courage where we fail
And if I can but shed some light as they carry us through the gale
We who believe in freedom cannot rest
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
The older I get the better I know that the secret of my going on
Is when the reins are in the hands of the young, who dare to run against the storm
We who believe in freedom cannot rest
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
Not needing to clutch for power, not needing the light just to shine on me
I need to be one in the number as we stand against tyranny
We who believe in freedom cannot rest
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
Struggling myself don’t mean a whole lot, I’ve come to realize
That teaching others to stand up and fight is the only way my struggle survives
We who believe in freedom cannot rest
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
I’m a woman who speaks in a voice and I must be heard
At times I can be quite difficult, I’ll bow to no man’s word
We who believe in freedom cannot rest
We who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes
Lyrics and music by Bernice Johnson Reagon
Sung by Sweet Honey in the Rock