Later this month, the parliament of Uganda is due to debate, and potentially pass, proposed laws designed to censor some of the country’s most prominent artists. The proposed regulations include vetting new songs, videos and film scripts prior to their release. Musicians, producers, promoters, filmmakers and all other artists will also have to register with the government and obtain a license that can be revoked for a range of violations. Not surprisingly, the proposals have been condemned as an intrusion into artistic freedom, and interestingly, the proposed legislation has inadvertently sparked a global recognition of the actual influence of what they are seeking to restrict. It is nothing new for the arts to make those in positions of power and control feel uncomfortable, and yet the power of what is sung, and what we ourselves sing, is easily overlooked. It can give a voice to our deepest emotions – and it can help shape our whole approach to life. The Old Testament psalms reflect almost every human condition – anger, grief, despair, illness, desertion, betrayal, and often a deep desire to see justice done. But alongside the lament, we also find praise, thanksgiving and celebration. All life is seen in light of a God whose ways might be beyond our recognizing, but who is to be found even in the darkest of our days.
It was this ability to keep on singing about a liberating God which helped sustain many slave communities in this country during the evil of slavery. Their voices blended in harmony to reach out beyond the drudgery and the misery to a promised land ‘Way over Jordan’. The singing encouraged, motivated, and articulated an important truth which these people had grasped, and were eager to declare with robust passion. What song are we called to sing? Are we singing it, or have we been silenced into submission by those who would prefer not to hear? The Ugandan government might succeed for a while in controlling what’s to be sung. But the song of truth won’t be silenced forever. As Sam Cooke wrote; ‘There have been times that I thought I couldn’t last for long, but now I think I’m able to carry on. It’s been a long, a long time coming but I know a change is gonna come, oh yes it will’. May we all find in God the words to our songs, and the strength to keep singing.
