Open Eyes

26 years ago my tour with Up With People took me to Montgomery, AL on the weekend of Martin Luther King Jr. day. My host mom in that city was an amazing woman named Gigi and my roomies that city were Jay from Wyoming and Carsten from Germany. The 3 of us instantly connected with Gigi and found ourselves staying up late to learn about her story and what it was like for her to grow up as a woman of color in the south. Neither Jay, Carsten, or myself came from a particularly diverse part of the world, so needless to say listening to what Gigi experienced was eye-opening for us.

We decided to play hookie for a day from our daily cast activities and Gigi did the same from work. Gigi took us to many different historical sites around Montgomery, Alabama. We visited the Civil Rights Monument, the site where the Montgomery Bus Boycott started, a bus station that still had a 'coloreds only' sign over a drinking fountain (in 1996), the Dexter Ave King Memorial Baptist Church where Dr. King served as pastor from 1954- 1960, the State Capital where the Selma to Montgomery March ended in protest of voting rights, and of course Jay and I couldn't leave Montgomery, AL without a stop at Hank Williams Jr.'s memorial site.

This day meant so much to this country girl from small town Colorado and deepened my understanding of the struggles and trials that face people of color in our country (and world). Listening to Gigi's story, visiting these places first hand, and experiencing the culture of the area was life changing for me.

That week our cast performed at the Historical Davis Theater, the exact location where Rosa Parks was arrested and the Bus Boycott officially started. That night in our Green Room the staff played U2's Sunday Bloody Sunday and 155 young people from 22 different countries were keenly aware of the magnitude and significance of the moment we were living in. I remember being on stage that night and looking into the audience and noticing a distinct segregation of whites and blacks in the auditorium. It was 1996 so there were no official 'segregated areas' in this theatre, but even in 1996 the separation was abundantly clear.

One of Up With People's first and arguably their most famous song, What Color Is God's Skin, is no longer performed in every show, but it does find its way back into the show line up for significant locations and events. THIS was one of them. As my friend and fellow cast mate, Tami, came to the stage to sing our final song of the night I remember being so overcome with emotion and I couldn't hold back the tears. I was not alone in that feeling because as I looked around there was not a dry eye on stage.

I learned so much in those few short days. The lens I see the world through changed that week. I learned the power behind listening, the beauty in someone else's story, and the grace and courage it requires to forgive. I still have so much to learn and so much more listening to do. People that are different than us are worthy of our time, our love, and our understanding and permanent change will not happen until we fully grasp that concept.

To J. Blanton Belk, founder of Up With People and friend of Dr. King, and to Dr. King himself, THANK YOU for being brave enough to fight for what you believe in, strong enough to continue on when the road was rough, and for sharing your heart with the world.

What Color Is God's Skin

"Good-night" I said to my little son
So tired out when the day was done.
Then he said as I tucked him in
"Tell me Daddy what color's God's skin?"

(chorus)
What color is God's skin?
I said, "It's black, brown, it's yellow
It is red it is white
Every man's the same in the good Lord's sight."

(verse)
He looked at me with his shining eyes
I knew I could tell no lies
When he said, "Daddy why to the different races fight
If we're the same in the good Lord's sight?"

(chorus)
What color is God's skin?
I said, "It's black, brown, it's yellow
It is red it is white.
Every man's the same in the good Lord's sight."

(verse)
"Son that's part of our suffering past
But the whole human family is learning at last
That the thing we missed on the road we trod
Is to walk as the daughters and the sons of God."

(chorus)
What color is God's skin?
I said, "It's black, brown, it's yellow
It is red it is white.
Every man's the same in the good Lord's sight.

Words & Music by: Tom Wilkes & David Stevenson