I’m not a musician, but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate music.

A PBS program just reminded me of the power of music--Get Up, Stand Up: The Story of Pop and Protest. The labor movement, civil rights, the Vietnam war, apartheid, and other issues have inspired songs that became a public battle cry. Hindsight is better than foresight, so it’s easier to recognize what was than to see what is and will be. I don’t recognize a contemporarily equivalent to Pete Seeger. I know Bono is doing good things to alleviate hunger in Africa, but war, poverty, and racism are also on the front page.

Where are the songs that pull us together?