Dissipating Border
Location
They sang in solemn tunes,
Their voices sweet and tender;
'Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.'
They had come a long way to get to that day;
Prejudice shook their right hand,
While Injustice shook their left.
Their faces were firm and set from harsh realities
Of their everyday life;
And they lifted up their voices and sung.
There, the meeting hall carried their last note away,
To the highest part of the building forever to stay;
And as that last note dissipated, borders dissipated;
Borders created by color and pride,
Borders created by ignorance and travesty.
These were the first Fisk Jubilee Singers;
and their song still remains.
A strong song it is,
A song of hope, a song of perseverance,
A song of entreaty, a song of triumph.
They sang in solemn tunes,
Their voices sweet and tender;
'Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.'