July 4th, 2025, is one year short of 250 years of this great experiment called democracy, and it is being tested like no other time. The abuses of power by Donald Trump and his administration are accelerating each day, from starting a war in Iran without Congressional approval to deploying the National Guard and Marines in California and defying due process for immigrants. Fortunately, the courts are fighting back with new lawsuits and rulings emerging every day. But the judicial system can’t do it alone. The “No Kings” protests, with more than five million people in 2,100 cities, were an astounding start. We, the people, need a song to bring us together and keep this momentum rolling, so on our 250th birthday on July 4, 2026, we are returning to a country based on laws.
Songs have been at the apex of transformational change throughout history. “We Shall Overcome” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing” spurred on the racial justice movement, and “Strange Fruit,” sung by Billie Holiday, seared the terror into our memories. Miriam Makeba was the voice of protest against apartheid in South Africa. “Eve of Destruction” by Barry McGuire rallied the youth to protest the Vietnam War.
For people who value the U.S. Constitution, I propose that “America the Beautiful” is that song. It is not a conservative, liberal, or war song, but rather it celebrates the land and freedom. It is not an aggressive nationalist song, but rather a patriotic song of the heart.
O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
Its language eloquently meets this moment as a desperate cry for all that we stand to lose. Katharine Lee Bates, an English professor at Wellesley College, wrote the words of this song from the majestic view on Pikes Peak in 1893. This song helps us remember what we stand to lose if the forces that govern ignore or flagrantly deny our laws.
O beautiful for pilgrim feet,
Whose stern, impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
“America the Beautiful” is not a perfect song about a perfect country. It reflects a time when so many were blind to the tragedies inflicted on the native peoples. But throughout our history, we have strived to make a more perfect union as we work to “…mend thine every flaw” and pursue the ideals of freedom and liberty for all. While religious overtones might be problematic for some, the God of this song represents a spiritual essence, transcending the specificity of any one religion.
America! America!
God mend thine every flaw,
Confirm thy soul in self-control,
Thy liberty in law!
“Thy liberty in law” meets this moment. It is not red or blue, and while we can disagree on policies, it is imperative we all stand up at a time when our country needs us.
In the movie “Casablanca”, when German soldiers begin singing the German anthem, “Die Wacht am Rhein," café owner Rick, played by Humphrey Bogart, gives the band leader permission to “Play La Marseillaise. Play it!” with a simple nod of his head. One by one, the people join together and sing the powerful French anthem with the purest sense of patriotism and defiance seen on film. Filmed in 1942, none of the actors actually knew which anthem they would be singing when the war was over. The tears were real.
While we can identify with his powerful display of patriotism, today’s situation in America is different. The French were being overcome from without; we are being besieged from within.
America! America!
God shed His grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
Only collective efforts of “brotherhood” will return us to a country based on laws. The emerging field of social neuroscience of music reports that making music together increases empathy by “tuning into how other people are thinking and feeling.” “Music lights up the whole brain,” not only integrating our body, heart, and soul but also connecting us to kindred travelers across time and culture.
There have been efforts, particularly during President John F. Kennedy’s administration, to give “America the Beautiful” legal status as a national hymn, but so far, none of these efforts have succeeded. Ray Charles popularized the song with a recording in 1972, “flavored by the improvisations we associate with gospel and soul music.” In 1976, his rendition of “America” peaked at number 98 on the U.S. R&B chart, and in 2001, he belted it out at the Super Bowl XXXV to honor the 225th anniversary of the birth of the U.S.
Let’s gather together and sing it now—at rallies, town halls, detention centers, in front of the Supreme Court, and in jails. Every choir director in the United States teaches these words to their choirs, whether school children, professionals, or those who have been discarded by this administration. Mega stars such as Jon Batiste, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, or John Legend have the power to bring “America the Beautiful” into the limelight; a song we can sing together from “sea to shining sea.”
Who knows, on July 4, 2026, as the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary, we the people, united by the belief that the Constitution is precious and worth saving for future generations, will sing “America the Beautiful” and just maybe save “thy liberty in law.”
Jan Erkert is a professor emerita and head of the department of dance at the University of Illinois from 2006-2022. She is a Fulbright Scholar, a Public Voices Fellow with the National Op-ed Project and Director of the University of Illinois’ Alumni Op-ed Project. She is currently writing “Stories from My Dancing Body.”
