Dear friends,
It is fitting that today, on the 155th anniversary of Juneteenth, Music for Seniors pauses to lift its voice in joining the world’s cry, that Black Lives Matter. We mourn and protest the injuries and deaths of individuals everywhere who have – and continue to be – victims of racism, intolerance and violence. George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and now Rayshard Brooks – all recent names added to a long and tragic list of lives lost. Leaving behind mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers and so many family and friends, to mourn lives interrupted by senseless death. Our world family mourns with them. We can no longer turn away from the entrenched structures that have allowed such violence and unforgiveable deaths to continue. With communities of color also suffering disproportionately from COVID-19, the inequities and casualties of systemic racism require immediate and lasting change.
Music for Seniors is an antiracist organization. We are committed to the fair and equitable treatment and protection of all of our program participants and all of the beneficiaries of our services. We do not exclude persons on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, physical or cognitive ability, or any other aspect of human identity. Since our founding in 2007, we have taken steps. Our staff has actively participated in Metro Nashville Arts Commission’s Racial Equity in Arts Leadership (REAL) Cadre. We intentionally have developed our Musician Partner, volunteer and board rosters toward more diversity. We strive to represent our culturally rich community and to serve everyone equally to our highest capacity. While taking a stand on anti-racism, equity and inclusion is important, at this historical moment it is no longer enough. Music for Seniors commits to participating in the change demanded by the thousands of protesters across the world, including those marching tirelessly in our own city.
The words of Susan Edwards, Executive Director of The Frist Art Museum in Nashville, are clear and eloquent and they echo our own. “How can we avoid resting on platitudes and be bold and proactive to institute changes that have a lasting impact? We are rigorously committed to examining ourselves, our presumptions and motives, our programming, staff, volunteers, board, councils, and operations. We can always do better. Nashville has a place in the history of the twentieth-century civil rights movement that was not always peaceful or easy. Ensuring that we are on the right side of history in 2020 is a responsibility we share. We look forward to coming together as we move toward a more equitable and just society. In service all things are possible.”
God bless us all on this continuing journey onward and upward.
Sarah Martin McConnell, MSSW
Founder, Executive Director