Let America Be America
by Langston Hughes
Langston Hughes’s genial, generous, and guarded persona was self-protective.Photograph by Carl Van Vechten / Carl Van Vechte
Print by Ryan Sheffield available on Etsy https://www.etsy.com/listing/1067594746/langston-hughes-author-portrait-quote
by Langston Hughes
Let it be the dream it used to be.
Let it be the pioneer on the plain
Seeking a home where he himself is free.
(America never was America to me.)
Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed—
Let it be that great strong land of love
Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme
That any man be crushed by one above.
(It never was America to me.)
O, let my land be a land where Liberty
Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath,
But opportunity is real, and life is free,
Equality is in the air we breathe.
(There’s never been equality for me,
Nor freedom in this “homeland of the free.”)
Say, who are you that mumbles in the dark?
And who are you that draws your veil across the stars?
I am the poor white, fooled and pushed apart,
I am the Negro bearing slavery’s scars.
I am the red man driven from the land,
I am the immigrant clutching the hope I seek—
And finding only the same old stupid plan
Of dog eat dog, of mighty crush the weak.
I am the young man, full of strength and hope,
Tangled in that ancient endless chain
Of profit, power, gain, of grab the land!
Of grab the gold! Of grab the ways of satisfying need!
Of work the men! Of take the pay!
Of owning everything for one’s own greed!
I am the farmer, bondsman to the soil.
I am the worker sold to the machine.
I am the Negro, servant to you all.
I am the people, humble, hungry, mean—
Hungry yet today despite the dream.
Beaten yet today—O, Pioneers!
I am the man who never got ahead,
The poorest worker bartered through the years.
Yet I’m the one who dreamt our basic dream
In the Old World while still a serf of kings,
Who dreamt a dream so strong, so brave, so true,
That even yet its mighty daring sings
In every brick and stone, in every furrow turned
That’s made America the land it has become.
O, I’m the man who sailed those early seas
In search of what I meant to be my home—
For I’m the one who left dark Ireland’s shore,
And Poland’s plain, and England’s grassy lea,
And torn from Black Africa’s strand I came
To build a “homeland of the free.”
The free?
Who said the free? Not me?
Surely not me? The millions on relief today?
The millions shot down when we strike?
The millions who have nothing for our pay?
For all the dreams we’ve dreamed
And all the songs we’ve sung
And all the hopes we’ve held
And all the flags we’ve hung,
The millions who have nothing for our pay—
Except the dream that’s almost dead today.
O, let America be America again—
The land that never has been yet—
And yet must be—the land where every man is free.
The land that’s mine—the poor man’s, Indian’s, Negro’s, ME—
Who made America,
Whose sweat and blood, whose faith and pain,
Whose hand at the foundry, whose plow in the rain,
Must bring back our mighty dream again.
Sure, call me any ugly name you choose—
The steel of freedom does not stain.
From those who live like leeches on the people’s lives,
We must take back our land again,
America!
O, yes,
I say it plain,
America never was America to me,
And yet I swear this oath—
America will be!
Out of the rack and ruin of our gangster death,
The rape and rot of graft, and stealth, and lies,
We, the people, must redeem
The land, the mines, the plants, the rivers.
The mountains and the endless plain—
All, all the stretch of these great green states—
And make America again!
Potato Leek Soup
Courtesy Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
As temperatures lower, this soup is super appealing to me. Velvety, smooth, flavorful and most of all, just plain comforting. God knows we all need a little comfort these days!
POTATO LEEK SOUP
by Kay Chun
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium leeks, light green and white parts only, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced (about 3 cups)
Salt and pepper
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1½ pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes (about 4 cups)
1 fresh or dried bay leaf
1 cup heavy cream
Chopped chives, for garnishing
Crusty bread, for serving
PREPARATION
In a large pot, melt butter over medium. Add leeks, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, 1 minute.
Add broth, potatoes and bay leaf; season with salt, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, adjust heat to medium-low and cook at a gentle simmer until potatoes are completely tender, 15 minutes. Discard bay leaf.
Working in two batches, if necessary, transfer soup to a blender and purée just until smooth. (Resist the urge to overprocess in the blender, which can result in gummy soup.) Return soup to the pot or, for an extra-silky soup, strain through a fine-mesh sieve into the pot.
Stir in cream and warm over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, for about 2 minutes. Season with salt.
Divide soup among bowls and garnish with chives. Serve warm, with crusty bread.
Serves 4
Music to Relieve Stress
Mozart Clarinet Concerto in A major, K.622
St. Saens The Carnival of the Animals The Swan
Massenet "Thais" Meditation
Erik Satie Gymnopedie No. 1
Schubert Impromptu No. 3
Debussy Clair de Lune
Pachelbel Canon in D Major
Chopin Nocturne No. 1 In B Flat Minor, Op. 9 No. 1
Painting of the Week
One of my favorite paintings these days, this one at the home of my niece Maia and her husband Julian along with their two children, Otto and Hugo, in Brooklyn, New York.
Charity of the Week: Voters of Tomorrow
About The Author
New York City based contemporary artist, Pam Smilow, began writing the creative lifestyle blog “things we love” in an effort to foster a sense of community during times of isolation and reflection. To read more about her and her art, visit her website and check out the essay written by Frank Matheis entitled The Sophisticated Innocence of Pam Smilow.